Sonic the Hedgehog: Episode One
by Murr-Quan Lord 2
Summary: NOT a crossover! A fanfic adaptation of Sonic 1 (yes, the first game), set in the NetRaptor universe and written in my primitive imitation of her epic style. Set about seven years before Daylight Savings. Much human/Overlander and Mobian history explor
1. Prologue; Green Hill Zone

Sonic the Hedgehog: Episode One

by Jared Spurbeck, Murr-Quan Lord #2

AUTHOR'S NOTE: This story is intended to take place in the NetRaptor Sonic universe, about seven years before Daylight Savings.

LEGAL NOTICE: Sonic, (Doctor Julian Ivo) Robotnik, and related characters are copyrighted by Sega or Archie comics. Boston Low, Maggie Robbins, and the Cocytans are to my knowledge copyrighted by Lucasarts. Slasher, Jay, and Robin are copyrighted by K. M. Hollar, used with permission. All human characters featured in this work, other than those mentioned above, are copyrighted by Jared Spurbeck, as are Shadow and Tachyon. Have you hugged a Penguin today?

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: Let's see. Other than the blindingly obvious (God) I suppose my family would come first; though if they're as smart as I think they are they aren't going to want their names associated with this work. :-)

Other than that... certain pieces of scientific theory, such as my choice of plasma- versus laser-based weaponry and especially the explanation of Sonic's speed are inspired by a series of essays I saw on sonichq.org written by some guy who called himself "R".

And, finally, NetRaptor herself had the most direct influence on this fic. Without her constant encouragement (not to mention assistance with maintaining storyline continuity and accuracy) this story would NEVER have been finished; and if I hadn't gotten thoroughly addicted to her works in the first place I wouldn't have even started. :-)

Enough with the legal stuff already!

*** 

Prologue

The fluffy, black cat stood next to Doctor Julian Ivo Robotnik, showing no fear whatsoever. In the coming years, countless other Mobians would face this individual, firey defiance burning in their eyes; perhaps they would issue a retort or two, just seconds before having their free will and conscious thought abruptly ripped away.

But Shadow was not defiant either. In fact, he wasn't even looking at the repulsive, egg-shaped human - his gaze instead covered the room in front of them. A walkway, perhaps five feet wide and four times that in length, surrounded on either side by water. Calm, nearly peaceful. Hardly turbulent, even as huge pillars rose up from the walkway or extruded from the ceiling to almost noiselessly make contact with the opposite surface.

But what drew most of their mutual attention was a glass panel set into the wall at the end of the walkway, just a few feet under the defensive plasma turret. Beyond the glass was a pebble-sized fragment of green crystalline material which seemed to glow - somehow - and had various tiny, multicolored wires connected to it.

The rock would hardly be impressive to a casual observer, and in fact would not even be visible at that distance were it not for its luminescence. Nevertheless, they were both smiling as they watched the machine's operation.

"What a beautiful machine," Shadow observed. Unlike that of the larger human, his smile was almost pleasant. Almost.

"Indeed," Ivo commented.

"The Chaos Engine's output easily rivals any conventional fusion plant. It should be more than adequate to your needs."

"Yes," Robotnik chuckled. "I'm very pleased with the design." He spoke as if the credit were all his, but Shadow hardly minded.

"And all this from a fragment of the eighth Chaos Emerald, no more than half an inch across."

The doctor just nodded, still admiring the construct.

"Now, if we could just get our hands on a few unbroken emeralds..." Shadow's voice trailed off, as if inviting further comment.

Robotnik took the bait, slowly turning to face Shadow. Coming from him, this was not mere idle speculation. "Yes?"

The feline Mobian concealed his pleasure. Things were proceeding so well. "Tachyon and I have been gathering some imagery from your new satellite, and I think that it may actually be possible to locate five, perhaps six of the Chaos Emeralds. Intact." He emphasized that last word.

"Oh?"

Shadow just smiled, trying to look as mysterious as he possibly could. No answers would be forthcoming.

The human became irritated at this, and stomped out in a huff. "Very well, play your enigmatic little games. I have other matters to attend to anyway. Just get me those emeralds!" There was a fine line between intriguing and infuriating Robotnik, one which Shadow had so far managed not to cross despite the occassional flare-up such as this one.

He watched the doctor leave, and then went off to a side door. It was time to set things in motion.

***

"GOOD MORNING, MOBIUS!!!"

Jerome Stevenson, a human of perhaps twenty years, sat in one of Starlight City International Airport's many departure lounges idly watching the large television in the corner. This early in the morning there was no one present except himself, the airport employees and an elderly couple off to the side, though some of the shops were beginning to open. Perhaps he would be able to buy a snack; he'd awakened late and hadn't had the time to eat.

Or maybe a magazine would be better. Yes, one of the computer magazines, that would give him something to do while he waited. Something more than watching the silly television, at any rate. Right now the flat, wall-mounted screen had switched from a large group of children to a couple of humans - one male, one female - sitting behind a desk, wearing expensive suitcoats and artificial smiles.

The male spoke. "That was Miss Meyer's seventh-grade class in Sapphire City, and this is Good Morning, Mobius." One of the more popular morning shows. Jerome checked the little display in the corner of the screen - 7:01 AM, temperature around sixty degrees. Fairly cool, but things would definitely heat up as the day went on.

A female voice, on the television. She was speaking to the male, attempting to give the impression that she was carrying on a conversation instead of directly imparting information to the audience. "Today's August ninth, and you know what that means..."

"Right, Claire, tomorrow is Arrival Day!" The female returned her gaze to the camera. "In honor of the seventy-seventh anniversary of the _Horizon_'s landing on Mobius, President Clark is holding a special peace conference in the capital, where he will meet with delegates from the Great Kingdom to discuss the prevention of future Human / Mobian wars." Knowing the media, the conference's main purpose was public relations, but at least it was something. The Great War was messy enough, and Jerome hardly wanted to see it repeated.

The male again. "Aren't we forgetting something? The Power Bowl is going to start tomorrow at eight," he turned to the camera, "and, as always, MBC will feature live coverage of the event."

"Back to the peace conference." The female seemed eager to change the subject, unlike certain members of the live studio audience; Jerome thought he could hear several football war cries in the background. "King Acorn has sent several representatives, and the Earth Republic has agreed to send delegates to represent both human and Cocytan interests." The alien birds still refused to set foot - or claw, as the case may be - on Mobius themselves, for some odd reason.

Somewhat bored, Jerome looked to the large, electronic board posted above the gate itself. Flight 208 left Mobotropolis at two AM and should have landed five minutes ago. Oh, wait, an aircraft was landing... he diverted his attention to the huge windows in the east wall. The morning sun was somewhat low in the sky, and cast long shadows across the lounge, but despite the glare he could make out a large aircraft beginning to land.

***

The jet touched down on the runway, and taxiied to the buildings at a fairly leisurely pace that only contributed to the unpleasant mood of the young blue hedgehog inside. Not satisfied with the accomodations in the first-class section, he would have vastly preferred to be up and about, not sitting in that chair for hours at a time; and having slept during the flight only contributed to his high energy level.

He bet he probably could have run faster than the plane anyway. Not that he had the endurance to run for that long, as his uncle in the next seat had pointed out, but then, he didn't really want to visit the human colonies anyway.

Why did his uncle have to be so important that he had to attend the peace conference? And why did he have to drag him along? "It'll be fun," he had said. Of course, his uncle didn't seem to mind the funny looks the humans kept giving them as they walked past them, down the plane's narrow corridor. Hadn't they seen a hedgehog before? And that Stevenson guy they were meeting - he'd never liked him back when he was living with them. Too quiet, except when he was telling him that he would get in trouble. Always trying to spoil his fun.

Sonic was, in general, about as cranky and rebellious as a ten-year-old could get, and had been that way since the early morning. Everything about the flight, from the changing air pressure to the airline food, had continued to offend him, and by now he was silent except to complain. Which he did frequently, and about nearly everything. The food was too cold, the air was too hot, the movie was too boring, EVERYTHING was boring. Sir Charles Hedgehog was very patient with his nephew, though, and was sure his mood would improve... whether or not it did before they went back home remained to be seen.

Sonic continued to sulk as they disembarked the aircraft, and put on his best "I am not enjoying myself" facial expression for Jerome's benefit as he and Sir Charles briefly exchanged pleasantries. The greeting that the human extended to Sonic was rudely dismissed, and at the other hedgehog's suggestion Jerome quickly proceeded to bring their group to his waiting car following a stop at the luggage carousel to pick up their suitcases.

He attempted to help by carrying as much of the luggage as he could and subsequently stowing it in his car's trunk; even though he was only a few inches over five feet tall, the Mobians' packs were relatively light. His vehicle was perhaps five years old, and lacked such luxuries as a heads-up display and backseat entertainment console, but it ran perfectly. Pressing a few keys on the dashboard Jerome started the silent, electric engine, as the Mobian passengers quickly filed in and awkwardly buckled the seatbelts around their three-foot frames. The shoulder harness had to be placed behind their heads, as it would have been across their faces otherwise.

Before the front-seat passengers had a chance to restart the conversation, Sonic restarted the complaining. "Why do we have to come here? Why do I have to come here; why couldn't I just stay in Mobotropolis? I'm big enough to take care of myself. And why do we have to stay with boring Mister Stevenson? Can't you afford a hotel?"

"Sonic," his uncle's patience was being tried, but hadn't yet collapsed, "Jerome kindly offered to let us spend the weekend at his house."

"After taking me in like that, it was the least I could do," the human commented.

Sir Charles continued. "Besides, there are a lot of things to do here in the human colonies. You can learn about new cultures, and go sightseeing, and - Jerome?"

"Well..." Jerome had never considered himself to be very good at dealing with children, especially those with attention spans as short as Sonic's. He had been highly relieved when his sister had offered to babysit the young hedgehog on the day of the peace conference. "We were sort of thinking of a picnic brunch, for starters, right after the two of you unpack." It had been Sir Charles' idea - go out to some open area and let Sonic run off the energy pent up during the plane ride.

The older Mobian continued. "Yes, and you had something scheduled for tomorrow, too."

Jerome nodded, and addressed Sonic. "My sister was going to be taking you to Springyard. She's also bringing her children; I think her oldest is the same age as you are." Sonic's curiosity was piqued somewhat, but he maintained a look of annoyed disinterest as he asked, "What's Springyard?"

The driver answered. "It's some sort of amusement park. Lots of trampolines set up all over the place, and some sort of weird Cocytan device that maintains less-than-normal gravity throughout. I visited it when I was twelve or so."

It did sound interesting, but Sonic was hardly about to let the grown-ups know that. Wrinkling his nose, he said, "Well, I think it's dumb. I think this whole place is dumb. And I don't want to play with the dumb human kids, either."

"Maurice Hedgehog!" Sonic's uncle chastised him using his full name, while Jerome did his best to look inconspicuous. "That is completely inappropriate. If you can only say mean, hateful things about the humans, then please remain silent."

And he did. His uncle rarely raised his voice at all, let alone to him. Why didn't he understand? He had fought the humans just a year or two ago... The adults resumed their conversation, albeit somewhat awkwardly, while he tried to occupy himself looking at his surroundings. The car's upholstery was soft enough, but every time he tried to sit back he had to be careful that his spines didn't impale the cushion. Not to mention that it obviously wasn't designed on a Mobian scale; his feet dangled over the edge of the back seat, and he had to shift his position and press against the seatbelt to be able to see anything more than the sky outside his window.

Not that he was much interested in the view when he'd finally seen it, anyway. They were coming into Starlight City now, and he found the brick and concrete landscape vastly less pleasant than the formed polymer constructs of Mobotropolis. Why did the humans build their buildings like that? He thought he remembered his uncle telling him something about zoning laws, about how they had to build things like they did back on Earth years ago. He gave a quiet snort of disgust. The humans were really dumb.

Sonic returned to the seat, hunched over, elbows on his knees and chin in his gloved hands. He thought that position was more appropriate for sulking, somehow, not to mention that it kept him from being visible to those outside the window. He was very uncomfortable in the human city, and having been forced to remain seated for hours on end - first on that airplane, and then in this oversized car - had only intensified his discomfort.

After what seemed like an hour to the impatient hedgehog they arrived at Jerome's house in the suburbs. Leased when the real estate prices were down during the post-war economic depression, it was a fairly pleasant abode built in late twentieth century style, resembling all the other nearby houses in design and many of them in its brownish exterior color. Not that Sonic paid much attention. He attempted to hasten the unpacking as much as possible, and almost ended up running into the wall immediately beyond the front door at several hundred miles an hour. As it was, Jerome occupied himself with repositioning all the loose items in his living room when they were blown over by the resultant air current, while the two hedgehogs unpacked in the guest room.

Once again, Sir Charles scolded his nephew as they re-entered the car bound for the picnic site. Normally he rarely had to - Sonic was usually cooperative, even if energetic and a bit headstrong. Why was he giving him so much trouble?

Chapter 1

Green Hill Zone

----------------

Shadow was still in a very pleasant mood as he walked down the well lit, albeit windowless hallway. His pure, almost glossy black fur was a bit of a contrast to the light gray carpeting and cream-colored walls; he often preferred to blend in with his surroundings, but there was no need here.

The few humans he passed usually looked somewhat uncomfortable around him. At first they would stare, then they would quickly avert their eyes. Sometimes he would smile brilliantly, looking directly at them, for no other reason than to watch them squirm. He really didn't care what the humans thought of him or his species.

After a minute or so he reached the unmarked door, hidden down a service hallway, which led to his small office. Reaching upwards and to roughly the level of his head, he pressed his paw to the small panel which served as both doorknob and security system. Recognizing his fingerprints, it opened the door.

The room was a perfect reflection of its owner. The walls, floor, and ceiling were all the same deep shade of black, the chair was pure black leather, even the desk was constructed from black marble - all the furniture built to Mobian scale, of course. A few dim lights were set into the walls at odd and chaotic angles, casting shadows across the room in unpredictable ways.

He loved it.

A dim, gray hologram appeared on top of his desk as he called up its computer's interface. He tapped a few buttons on a keyboard, and then spoke in the direction of the hologram - neither a commanding nor timid tone of voice, simply a pleasant, almost cheerful one.

"Tachyon? Please respond."

***

The peregrine falcon that answered to that name had been eating breakfast in an otherwise unoccupied cafeteria at the time. Just as his dull, grayish back feathers almost matched the walls, the wooden-brown feathers on his underbelly went well with the mixture that sat on his plate; a nutrient bar and some sort of protein mixture, neither of which had more than the merest hint of actual flavor. Shadow was very proud of his aide and bodyguard's local reputation as "the fastest thing alive", and insisted that Tachyon subject himself to a suitably grueling physical regime in order to maintain his condition.

He nearly jumped when the communicator worn around his left wrist suddenly came alive with Shadow's voice. The feline had the habit of waking Tachyon this way in the middle of the night, and he had come to quickly snap to a very alert state of mind whenever it occurred.

Tachyon pressed a button on the small plastic band. "Yes, sir?" He spoke with some amount of apprehension. Usually, when Shadow sounded this happy it meant that he was trying to disguise his rage; either that, or his plans were going extraordinarily well. This time it was the latter, as he would find out.

The cheerful voice came from his communicator again. "What are you doing right now?" It wasn't like him to be concerned as to Tachyon's affairs... perhaps he really was as pleased as he sounded.

The falcon answered his master even as he moved to dispose of the contents of his plate, moving with an almost jerking quickness, his head bobbing ever so slightly as he walked. "I was eating, sir." Past tense. Shadow expected prompt, if not immediate, responses to his summons.

"Yes, that reminds me... please drop by my office, and bring me something to eat on your way."

Tachyon moved to place the tray and silverware in their bin. "Specifically what, sir?"

"I don't know. Surprise me."

With exquisite carefulness he selected what looked like a tuna casserole from the food dispenser. If Shadow really was in a great mood, he hardly wanted to spoil it by bringing him something that he would consider unpleasant. Not that he would be punished - the cat reserved that for more important violations - but the worse Shadow's mood got, the more likely such torture became.

Tray in hand, he walked out and headed for his master's office, attempting to balance the dishes while simultaneously keeping from running into the humans at the brisk pace with which he moved. He never had the time to gauge their reactions to his presence; always he was too occupied with his busy schedule to do much more than keep his eyes on the path in front of him. Not that he cared any more than Shadow as to what they thought. They were only background, pieces in some game his master played, and definitely not for him to worry about. Shadow was the only one he feared or respected; everyone else only merited his disdain, if that much. Though that Robotnik fellow was almost troubling...

He reached the unmarked door and, executing the same procedure, opened it and went inside. Shadow quickly commanded his computer to shut the door, squinting at the comparatively blinding light coming from the outside hallway.

Tachyon was somewhat nervous in Shadow's presence. Everything about the room suggested that it was the den of a cunning and malevolent predator; one who surrounded himself with advanced technology and avian bodyguards, but a predator nonetheless. The cat's eyes were the only thing about him that was really visible, efficiently reflecting what light there was in the room even as his fur blended into the darkness.

This contemplation lasted only a moment as Shadow's voice interrupted the silence, its brightness a sharp contrast with his surroundings. "Hi, Tachyon! Set the tray down on my desk and have a seat. I have something very important to discuss with you."

The bird-Mobian did so, putting the tray on the desk and setting his avian frame down on the plush, black couch against the wall, careful not to ruffle his feathers excessively. He did not prompt Shadow further - he would speak when he felt like it.

Shadow's eyes, both designed for and accustomed to the dark, easily picked out the tray and identified its contents. He reached across the desk to pull it towards him, momentarily distorting the faint hologram as he did so, and picked up a fork so as to taste the food. "Tuna." He purred quietly before resuming in earnest. "How thoughtful of you."

"Thank you, sir."

He took a few more bites, and then spoke again. "Remember that satellite we deployed last week?"

"Yes, sir."

Shadow continued to speak in between bites, remembering his hunger all of a sudden. "Well - I've been planning this for months now. With the upgraded sensors I installed, it's just sensitive enough to detect distortions in the fabric of reality, such as the ones that were caused when the Chaos Emeralds were hidden."

If Tachyon had his master's feline ears, they would have perked at this. To control the emeralds again... no wonder Shadow was so pleased. That also explained why they had been taking so many pictures with that satellite.

"And," he gulped down almost half of a glass of milk, "they're all within fifty miles of here. Imagine that. Here we've been practically sitting right on top of 'em all this time, and didn't even notice."

"Their being located in Space-Time Five would tend to do that, sir." The Chaos Emeralds may have been right next to them along the dimensions of length, width, depth, and time, but they were somehow out of phase with reality, and therefore inaccessible.

Shadow dismissed his aide's comment with a wave of his hand, and then consumed another forkful of tuna and noodles before continuing. "Anyway. Now that we know where they are, you can start looking for them. Here you go." And before Tachyon could ask any questions, he tossed him a small device of some sort. The bird just barely caught it; his vision was excellent, but he wasn't quite as used to the dark as Shadow was.

"And this is...what, sir?"

Shadow responded with a smile that was only barely visible. "Let's just say that several echidnas were harmed in the making of this product."

"A teleporter?"

"Yup. Their time gun was pretty much demolished by the time I was through, but I did manage to salvage the teleporter circuitry. With the rewiring I've done, it should be able to take you to where the emeralds are."

"...should be able to?"

"Well, I haven't finished testing it, but the Chaos Engine is already done and I wanted to snag the emeralds for it. Preferably before we implement phase two. Don't worry, the preliminary test results were very encouraging. The teleporter already has the emeralds' coordinates programmed in; all you should have to do is go to the right spot, open a portal, and grab the things. I've included a restriction field in the device, so you'll be able to carry them in compressed form once you've found them."

Tachyon wasn't quite encouraged, but he'd been in vastly more dangerous situations before. Besides, Shadow insisted that he carry out these instructions.

He gave the device another look - he'd have to bring it out into the light to actually see it well - and then attached it to his belt. "Do you require anything else, sir?"

Shadow shook his head while chewing on his food. Swallowing, he said, "Nope. Not right now. But please do get going as soon as possible. I will be very displeased if I'm not in possession of those beautiful emeralds by tonight."

And so Tachyon departed Shadow's office, quickly closing the door behind him so as not to disturb the cat's night vision any more than necessary. As he left the fearsome room and his mind cleared somewhat, a sense of elation swept over him. They would have the Chaos Emeralds again! It had been years - years that they'd had to work with the humans, years of watching Shadow humiliate himself by speaking with that Robotnik as if he were his superior. Well, pretty soon it would be all over, for their pitiable situation and the accursed humans both.

***

The two Mobians and their human companion had arrived at their picnic site not ten minutes ago, and already everything had gone crazy.

The Green Hill Wilderness Zone was perhaps a half hour's worth of driving away from Starlight City, but the view, if nothing else, was worth it. Low, rolling green hills - hence the name - were dotted with trees that greatly resembled Earth palm trees, not to mention the giant flowers. And less than a mile away was the sea; beautifully reflective, the water churning ever so slightly, the gentle breeze blowing its fresh, minutely salty scent over the landscape. Beyond the sea, to the north, were a series of immense mountains, their reddish-brown color a contrast to the water.

The small parking lot only had a few cars in it, Jerome's included. As he and Sir Charles had tried to set up their supplies on a nearby table, Sonic had insisted on going over to a nearby playground. And then, just a few minutes afterwards, they had heard crying, briefly interrupted by the unmistakable sound of Sonic's high-speed departure. Jerome knew he should have tried to keep the hedgehog occupied in some other way... unlike his sister's children, most humans harbored feelings towards Mobians that ranged from mild animosity to outright hatred, and he should have seen an incident of this sort coming a mile away. Not that he would have likely been able to change Sonic's mind, but...

The two adults quickly ran over to the playground to see what was going on. A six-year-old human boy sat crying on the sand, as his mother stood nearby apparently trying to comfort him. Jerome could distinctly make out several long, blue spines embedded in the child's arm; those nearby attempted to remove them, which prompted intensified crying.

As they approached, another human - probably the mother of one of the other children - ran up. "Keep that nasty creature away from us!" she yelled, pointing at Sir Charles. "The other one already did enough damage!"

Jerome gave the hedgehog a helpless look, and Sir Charles promptly went back to their table to wait. The female resumed yelling before he arrived. "Yes, just go away! Go back to your stupid cities up north!" Her words were not met with any response, and Jerome attempted to start some sort of dialogue. "Excuse me, ma'am, but... well, what just happened here?"

Her glare, potent enough as it was, was only amplified by the continued yelling of the child behind her. "I'll tell you what happened. That stupid hedgehog attacked Mabel's son is what happened! Just go away, and take your Mobian friend," she said it as if it were a heinous insult to even suggest that one would associate with a Mobian, "with you!"

With that, she stomped off. Seeing that no further information would easily be obtained, Jerome went back to meet Sir Charles, the woman's fierce rebuke leaving him quite shaken. He was surprised that she hadn't said anything about Sonic's departure; perhaps no one had noticed.

He told the hedgehog what she said had happened, and Sir Charles reacted in confusion. "I shouldn't have let him run off there... but how did that happen? Why would Sonic attack someone like that?"

"Most likely he didn't," Jerome suggested. "Either that, or they teased him. Provoked him somehow." Human children were remarkably good at that, as he recalled, and Sonic had a fairly short fuse to begin with. Especially today.

He looked around. Sure enough, Sonic was nowhere in sight, and at the speeds with which he ran he could easily be several miles away by now. "Now what? Maybe give him a chance to cool down some?"

The hedgehog shook his head. "I've never seen him act like this before - there's no telling what he might do. Maybe he did attack that boy." It pained him to admit it, but it was a genuine possibility. "I've got to find him, try to talk with him." Without another word, he got up and left the table.

Jerome considered coming with him, but decided against it. His presence probably wouldn't help matters much. Not to mention that Sir Charles had his title for a reason, and was more than capable of tracking Sonic down, even without the benefit of his nephew's speed. With a faint sigh, he started putting the food back in his car. The picnic was over before it began, and even though he was hungry he would prefer eating inside his vehicle to sitting at that table, vulnerable to further piercing glares on the part of the other humans.

***

At that moment Sonic was running, running far faster than any lifeform should be able to. Trees whipped past him on either side, and the wind easily blew his spines far in back of his head. At these velocities, colliding with so much as a stray leaf could easily be fatal.

Not that Sonic cared. As he ran, a series of cells just under his skin were playing with laws of physics that he only barely understood - emitting a faint energy field, a combination of gravitic and electromagnetic radiation. Debris was rapidly deflected by this field, sliding around it to be blown around crazily and eventually meet with the ground or whatever was in the way. Even the air, save what he needed to breathe, was swept past him as the field assisted in accelerating him to speeds approaching and often breaking the sound barrier. His feet never even touched the ground when he was traveling this fast; he instead ran on an invisible cushion of atmosphere, with hardly any resultant wear to his trademark shoes.

These rare traits were dormant in his parents and uncle, but manifested themselves in him with full force. He loved to run, and did it as much as possible. He was always the first pick when forming teams for Baseball, Capture the Flag and other games where speed was important. And now... now he was just running because he was mad and wanted to get away.

How could those human kids be so mean? He hadn't even said a word to them - had just gone over to an otherwise unused piece of playground equipment - and suddenly they were all around him, insulting him and everything about him. One of them said that his dad was captured in the Mobian war. As if that was Sonic's fault - he hadn't been in the war, he was only five then! Besides, didn't they know it was called the Great War?

He had told those kids what he thought of them, and then they dragged him off of the equipment and started hitting him. At that point he reflexively rolled up into a spiked ball on the ground, hoping that would discourage them, but they just went on, kicking his unprotected sides. Eventually his temper manifested itself; he leaped backward and upwards from his prone position, hoping to prick one of the bullies with his spines.

He hadn't known that that little six-year-old was standing there watching! It wasn't his fault! And then they started yelling again, and said that he was really in trouble now, and their parents started toward them... so he took off, instantly accelerating to several hundred miles an hour, running in no particular direction except 'away', spindashing right through a chain-link fence he encountered.

And 'away' he was. His temper cooling somewhat from the expenditure of energy, he stopped and looked around. He couldn't see where he had come from; everywhere there were low hills and tall trees, except to the north, where he could see that the beach was less than a quarter-mile away.

The setting was peaceful, serene. Waves could be heard, lapping gently against the sand nearby, and the sun was higher in the sky, beating down warmly. He started walking this time, wanting to be alone to think. Now that he wasn't quite as upset, he was beginning to feel bad about hurting that boy.

Not that it would do any good to apologize. After all, he thought, humans didn't understand anything. They just wanted to start wars and kill people. Like his mom and dad...

He stopped and forced himself not to cry. No good thinking about that again. But this whole experience had brought back very faint memories, of being five years old, when he was staying with his uncle Chuck - as he called him - and being told that his parents had been killed during a battle. Something about human soldiers invading Lower Mobotropolis, early on in the war. He remembered watching news footage of soldiers, carrying huge weapons and stomping through streets that looked like they had been bombed. Streets like the one he used to live on.

Sonic started running again. There was no way he was going to keep thinking about such things.

***

Flying his signature hovercraft low over the same green hills, Robotnik was in a mood the foulness of which matched the sadness of Sonic's. He did not like being kept uninformed. How dare that miserable cat treat him that way!

No, he told himself. It didn't matter how Shadow got him the emeralds; it just mattered that they ended up in his possession. But still... the feline had always been like that. The first time he saw him, he had just waltzed right into Ivo's office, set a small green pebble on his desk, and walked off, smiling and ignoring the angered commands to stop and explain himself.

At first Robotnik had actually experienced fear. Was it a bomb of some sort? But then, when it failed to detonate, his curiosity overcame both fear and anger as he brought it to his laboratory. It was like nothing he'd ever seen before - clearly a crystalline structure, but it wasn't made of normal matter, had no atoms or chemical bonds. It was... different, somehow.

The next day Shadow showed up again and was promptly heaped with questions. 

what was that rock? The scan results were highly unusual. Why? And what was it good for? Shadow had been happy to provide answers, and assisted the doctor all through his research. He had even helped a little with the design for the Chaos Engine, Robotnik admitted to himself.

The years afterward were a blur. He remembered getting a secret defense contract, moving out of that suburban office center and into a huge laboratory complex where he had the final say in everything. Being permitted to pursue whatever lines of research he wanted, even the more... controversial ones. It was a _secret_ defense contract, after all, and the military was very good at keeping its secrets. Not to mention that they had become eager for new technologies, after having their pride wounded during the Mobian War.

From what the cat had told him, he knew that there were other Chaos Emeralds besides the one that shard had been broken off of. But he hadn't said a word about actually recovering them until today. Why wait? Why not just grab them, or try to, in the first place? He felt like he was being used somehow, like Shadow was trying to manipulate him. And he did not like being manipulated.

But, he was sure that whatever mysterious goals Shadow was pursuing, they were either beneficial to him as well or would be easily stopped if they got out of hand. He may be resourceful, Robotnik thought, but I have the most advanced technology in the world, plus a complex that was larger than many small countries. With better security systems, to boot.

He was almost cheering up at the thought when he remembered why he was out there in the first place. Those stupid robots! He thought he'd programmed them to be smarter than to build another confinement node out here; this area's Class A Flickies were all he was interested in, and they had harvested most of them anyway. He could get more than enough nonsentient animals elsewhere.

His thoughts were interrupted when he saw an incoherent blue streak speed by at ground level. What on Mobius...? He turned the hovercraft around and followed, staying above the trees so as to not be easily spotted.

***

Sonic came to a stop again, almost but not quite winded by the exercise. He was beginning to cheer up - running was his favorite pastime, and he had been forced to sit down for so long earlier. He looked around again. Where was he? It looked like some sort of park or wildlife reservation. Funny, he hadn't seen any animals. He walked onward, completely absorbed in his surroundings now.

***

After several minutes of flying, Robotnik's hovercraft brought him within sight of Sonic. He looked down, over both his console and the trees. It was a Mobian hedgehog. Anger filled him anew, and he came close to blowing his cover by either yelling or slamming a fist onto the controls. How did he get here? How could he run so fast? Most importantly, what was he doing on Robotnik's territory - didn't he see the fence? The signs? There weren't any troops guarding the perimeter, but then, he sincerely hadn't expected visitors, not to mention that this area was in close proximity to a park. He didn't want to attract attention, or nosy journalists.

What if he'd already seen the experiments? This thought was particularly troublesome. He certainly couldn't let the general public know what was going on. He looked around; there weren't any other intelligent lifeforms as far as the eye could see.

There would be no witnesses.

He silently brought the hovercraft several dozen yards away, and then lowered the wrecking ball, attached to the craft, that he'd originally brought to demolish the confinement node. With a little luck he would only require one pass.

***

Sonic continued walking through the... well, it didn't really count as a forest, the trees were so thin that he could easily see the ocean. Still, the palm-like trees and other local flora were novel enough to keep his attention for several seconds at a time. He loved the outdoors - wasn't quite the type to hug trees, in fact he usually didn't see much of them at all other than a brief glimpse as he sped past, but nevertheless. And this place was particularly interesting. Enough scenery to keep his active mind occupied, but not so much that it began to impede his running.

He was distracted by some sort of mechanical humming noise. Very faint, but increasing in volume and proximity. What was it? He turned around to face the sound's source.

***

The little Mobian had just noticed him, his eyes wide with surprise, but Robotnik kept on course. The wrecking ball briefly grazed the ground; he increased altitude accordingly. These intrusions were so annoying. Just a couple of weeks ago his automated sentry drones had shot a couple of teenagers who had used wire cutters to break through the fence. Fortunately, no one had ever found out what had happened, and Shadow had assured him that no questions would be asked.

And then the hedgehog was gone, seeming to instantly zip past. What...? He turned around to look, and the hovercraft rewarded his inattentiveness by running into a tree, the wrecking ball following almost immediately afterwards. The tree was much larger than those around it, and the small vehicle was effectively stopped cold.

He was up at roughly the level of the tree's immense leaves, and ended up brushing them off of himself frantically as he grabbed the controls and attempted to right himself. Stupid, he thought. You had just seen it run past at obviously high speeds, of course it would have correspondingly well-developed reflexes!

***

Sonic barely had time to think before running out of the way. Catching his breath, he looked back in time to see the hovercraft smack into one of the tall trees. The operator - whoever he was - cursed something or other, and seemed to be doing something with the controls while simultaneously swatting at the leaves.

He had seen that human's malicious stare; he was deliberately trying to kill Sonic! Not pausing to contemplate this, he ran towards the hovercraft and brought himself into a spindash, curling into a spiny, flying ball directed at the aft of the machine.

***

Robotnik was almost thrown out of his seat - would have been, if he weren't wearing his seatbelt - and ended up getting a mouthful of leaves in the process. Spitting, cursing, as confused as he was enraged, he finally succeeded in turning the hovercraft around in time for it to be rocked by another attack. The wrecking ball broke free, its chain severed, and embedded itself in the ground with a thump.

Whatever was going on, it was destroying his hovercraft! He quickly brought it away, higher up into the air, only briefly turning around to see the hedgehog standing there watching his departure.

***

Charged with adrenaline, Sonic had quite a difficult time calming down. It had all happened so fast! He had thrown his spiny, electromagnetically charged self into that machine multiple times, and then the wrecking ball snapped off, almost on top of him, and then he hurled himself at the hovercraft again, but it was too high, and he just stood there watching it, and...

Gasping for breath and staggering back to sit on top of the giant sphere that he had almost been smeared across less than a minute ago, reality hit him full force. That man had tried to kill him! He'd never been in mortal danger before - what was going on? His control shaken by the experience, he started crying openly, right there in the middle of the not-quite-forest. Wasn't it enough that the humans killed his parents, did they have to go after him too? They were jerks, all of them!

It was several minutes before he regained his composure, wiping tears away and sniffling somewhat. What to do now? If he went back, he was sure he'd be in big trouble for hurting that boy and running away. What would happen if he kept going? Why was he attacked? He vaguely remembered smashing through a fence on the way here. Had he stumbled onto government property or something?

Curiosity overcame his impatient, youthful mind, and he decided to keep exploring, the recent danger pushed to the side as if he wanted to forget that it had ever happened. But I'll only explore for a little while, he told himself. Besides, he hadn't eaten breakfast yet and was getting hungry.

***

Tachyon stepped out of the portal, which closed behind him a second or two afterwards. The device worked, sure enough. It hadn't been quite as easy as Shadow had suggested - several important laws of physics, such as gravity, seemed to have been either repealed or amended in Space-Time Five. Nevertheless, he was back on Mobius now, and carrying a bright green gem under one wing.

Checking his communicator's chronometer, he almost laughed out loud. It hadn't even been an hour, and they already had a Chaos Emerald! At this rate, he would be at least half done by lunch time. Shadow would be thrilled!

He pressed the emerald to a small port on the front of the teleporter, and it almost instantly shrank to a fraction of its original size, embedded in the tiny indentation. One down, five to go. That would place three-fourths of the emeralds back in their possession, and if these were so easy to acquire then surely the other two wouldn't be much trouble later.

He was just about to take flight again, following the coordinates pre-programmed into the teleporter, when Shadow's voice spoke from his communicator again. "Tachyon? Come in." He sounded annoyed.

The falcon pressed a button on his wristband, and spoke into it, his jubliant mood somewhat sobered by his master's irritation. "Yes, sir?"

"Where have you been? I've been trying to reach you for several minutes now."

He responded, his ecstatic pleasure beginning to show again. "The teleporter worked perfectly, sir! I was in Space-Time Five!"

Now Shadow sounded distinctly pleased. "Of course it did," he said casually. "Did you find the emerald?"

"Yes, sir! I was on my way to the next site, sir!"

"Excellent," the cat praised, if only briefly. "Now listen up. I've been eavesdropping on some of Robotnik's communications, and there's a bit of a situation developing..." There was a pause as Shadow checked the position of the tracking device in Tachyon's wristband. "...not too far from where you are, actually."

"What kind of situation, sir?"

"Just a minute or two ago - you're not going to believe this - his hovercraft was attacked and damaged by something that he keeps referring to as 'Priority Hedgehog'."

Tachyon laughed out loud, turning away from the receiver as he did so. Regaining his composure, he continued speaking. "Priority Hedgehog, sir??"

"Yup. From what I can tell, he's unarmed and about the same shade of blue as the language our not-so-little human 'friend' is using to describe him."

"Unarmed? Then how did he..."

"I have no idea. Robotnik was muttering something about running into a tree, though; I don't think he knew he was still transmitting." Shadow sounded highly amused, and 

Tachyon snickered a bit.

"Do you want me to go and have a look, sir?"

"Yes, why not. That's why I called in the first place. And watch out that this hedgehog doesn't bite you or something." He obviously wasn't taking this very seriously.

"Right, sir."

***

Sonic had broken into a run not half a minute ago, and already he found himself stopping to check something interesting out. In the middle of a small clearing was what looked like a large, gray metal cylinder, about four feet tall and a foot less in diameter.

He went closer to examine the machine. Several small indicators, along with a control panel and a window, adorned its surface. He ignored the gauges and displays - he had no idea what the data meant - but the window intrigued him, and so he put his face to it and looked inside.

The interior was dark. He wasn't sure he could make out much of anything beyond a couple of dim lights. He tapped on the glass a couple of times-

And jumped back abruptly. _Something_ had rushed right up to the glass and just about scared the living daylights out of him!

He looked at the window again. There was what looked like a pink bird of some sort, chirping frantically; and silently, he noticed, the cylinder seemed to be soundproof. It looked like it was pleading with him, imploring him to do... what?

"What do you want?" he asked, face back up to the window. The bird couldn't hear him, but waved her arms to his right. He turned to see the control panel, its screen displaying meaningless statistics and some sort of user interface. Did the bird want to be let out? Of course, that made sense! What didn't make sense was why the bird was acting the way it was. He'd never heard of an intelligent bird before. Of course, he thought, in a moment of remarkable insight, an intelligent hedgehog sounds kind of silly too...

Sonic nodded to the bird, trying to show that he understood, and walked over to the control panel to take a look. It wasn't all that confusing once you ignore the statistics, he thought; the operating system looked like a popular off-the-shelf commercial interface, and he'd worked with computers a little before. Jerome used to always be downloading games and such off of the Mobotropolis mainframe, and had often let Sonic play them on his computer.

It took a bit of figuring out, but he eventually got it to work. There was a popping sound, a hiss as the air pressure equalized, and then it simply opened up as the top and sides rose to reveal a now wall-less interior with the pink bird and a smaller blue one inside.

The pink one began speaking excitedly before the capsule had even fully opened. Predictably enough, her voice was high-pitched and excitedly joyous. "Thank you thank you thank you! You saved us! I'm Cumulus, and this is my brother-"

"Hold it!" Sonic protested. This bird was talking much too fast. "What's going on here?"

"That," an entirely new voice said, "is what I'd like to know."

***

After a couple minutes of flying - just cruising along, barely topping sixty miles an hour -Tachyon finally spotted a blue hedgehog in the sea of green that constituted the Green Hill Wilderness Zone. Standing next to a confinement node, no less... how odd.

He swooped in, silently landing perhaps fifteen feet behind the hedgehog at about the same time that he opened the node. Tachyon considered the scene vaguely amusing; 'Priority Hedgehog' looked to only be about ten years old.

Sonic whirled around to face the falcon as soon as he spoke. "Who are you?"

Tachyon considered brushing the query aside, but decided that there wouldn't be any harm in answering it. He was actually rather proud of his name and the attached reputation. "Tachyon," he said simply.

"Tack-yawn? What a dumb name." The hedgehog seemed distinctly unimpressed.

"The tachyon is a hypothetical subatomic particle that cannot move slower than light," Tachyon pointed out, only mildly irritated. Not that he expected the ten-year-old to fully understand what he said.

"Well, I think it's dumb." Sonic didn't much care whether or not he made this falcon mad; he probably worked here, after all, and that made him the enemy.

Tachyon, on the other hand, didn't really care what Sonic thought of his name, or he told himself so anyway. "Who, pray tell, are you, and what do you think you're doing here?"

Drawing himself up to his full, three-foot height, the hedgehog proclaimed, "I'm Sonic." Perhaps not considering that informative enough, he continued. "Sonic the Hedgehog." Oh really? Tachyon thought. And here I was, convinced that you were a unicorn. Silly me. But he kept these thoughts to himself, and Sonic continued. "I'm exploring this place. I also saved these birds, and," he added with a mischievous and childish grin, "I beat up your boss."

The peregrine falcon didn't really consider Robotnik to be his 'boss', per se, but he was beginning to wonder if this mammal actually did pose a threat. "Oh, really?"

"Yup." Sonic nodded proudly.

"And why should I not capture or outright destroy you for doing so?" Tachyon queried, his amusement quickly turning to annoyance.

"Because you can't catch me." The hedgehog smiled. He was feeling quite dangerous; invincible, for that matter.

Cumulus piped up at this time. "Watch out, Sonic! Tachyon's the fastest thing alive! He's really mean, and he kidnapped me and my brother, and-" Sonic turned around to answer her comments, and Tachyon took that opportunity to leap forward and grab the hedgehog by his arm.

He started dragging Sonic away. "I think 'my boss' would probably like to have a word with you, if you really did 'beat him up'." Despite his light, avian frame, Tachyon was much stronger than Sonic and was able to drag him quite effectively, despite his vocal protests. "Let me go!" Sonic dug his heels into the ground, but only succeeded in digging a couple of small ruts in the dirt and almost tripping himself, the female bird behind him chirping hyperactively all the way.

Tachyon wasn't quite sure how he would get his captive all the way back to Shadow's location by himself, so he raised his left wing to speak into the attached communicator. "Sir?" He grunted a little; the hedgehog had grabbed a flower that was taller than he was, and was trying to keep from moving by holding onto it with his free hand. Tachyon increased his pulling force accordingly, grabbing Sonic's arm with both hands, as Shadow responded. "Yes? Have you found this 'Priority Hedgehog'?"

Sonic knew they were talking about him, but continued trying to stabilize his position, his right hand wrapped around the flower and his left arm firmly in Tachyon's grasp. The bird gave another sharp tug, then leaned his head forward to speak into the communicator, his voice still showing the exertion of struggling against Sonic and the unusually tough flower. "Yes, I have, and he doesn't want to come with me. Would you mind sending some reinforcements?"

Shadow sounded amused again. "Is he really giving you that much trouble?"

Tachyon pulled sharply again, and this time Sonic broke free with a snap as about half of the flower came off in his hand while the lower part of its stem remained attached to the ground. Tachyon's patience was pretty much depleted, and he didn't even speak formally to his master. "Do you really think that I am capable of dragging an unwilling child all the way-MMPH!"

His captive had just swung the flower around and into Tachyon's face. The plant bore a remarkable resemblance to a sunflower, its main, upper part was more than a foot wide, and as a direct result of Sonic's action its pollen-filled center was now impaled on Tachyon's beak. He sneezed, his eyes watering profusely, and reflexively released the hedgehog to try to remove the allergy-stimulating plant from his face.

Sonic quickly ran off, forgetting all about the formerly trapped birds; not that he could do much about them, anyway, with Tachyon around.

***

Shadow attempted to contact his aide several times, but was only rewarded with the distinctly unpleasant noises of sneezing, coughing, and gagging as Tachyon's horribly irritated sinuses tried to clear themselves of the giant particles of pollen. He waited several minutes, and finally a very tired-sounding peregrine falcon answered him. "I'm sorry, sir... (cough) the hedgehog (cough) seems to have gotten away (cough cough)." Tachyon, however, had not noticed the speed with which Sonic departed, being much too busy sneezing.

Tachyon's master sighed, and threw his arms up in the air as he responded. "How?"

"He hit me with a flower, sir."

Shadow stared blankly at the hologram that comprised his computer's display, and then pressed a hand to his forehead and slowly drew it down across his face, eyes closed. This was just getting weirder and weirder.

"Forget the hedgehog for now; as far as I'm concerned, he's Robotnik's problem. Just continue retrieving the emeralds."

"Yes..." He seemed to break off in mid-sentence, and a long pause ensued. Shadow impatiently queried, "What?"

"Sir, it may be somewhat difficult to do that at this point."

The cat was beginning to experience anger and dread, all at the same time. "And why is that?"

"Because..." Tachyon gulped. Shadow was not going to like this, and when he was unhappy very bad things often happened to his aide. "I think the hedgehog may have possibly run off with the teleporter, sir."

"WHAT!!??"

***

Tachyon covered the wristband's speaker with his hand as loud and incoherent banging noises issued forth from it. Shadow was not normally given to profanity - considered its usage to be a sign of weakness - but often paradoxically took out his anger on his surroundings. And Tachyon.

A final, drawn-out grating sound was heard, followed by a long pause. Then, Shadow spoke, his voice having traded its pleasantness for a colder, angrier tone. "You are going to get me those emeralds. And the teleporter. AND that hedgehog. And you may not come back until you do."

He responded with a fearful "Yes, sir..." but Shadow had already cut the connection. Shooting a hateful glance at the formerly imprisoned birds, he took flight, hoping to find Sonic. Perhaps, if he was lucky, Shadow would let him kill the hedgehog once he was through with him.

***

The cat panted a little, trying to calm down. He looked in dismay at several long gouges in the surface of his desk, and wiped powdered marble off of the shiny, black objects that comprised his claws. Now, he thought, I shall have to have my desk repaired.

***

Perhaps half an hour ago Sir Charles had set out on Sonic's trail. He was somewhat difficult to follow, as the air cushion his field generated effectively kept him from leaving footprints, but to a skilled tracker the task was not impossible.

He had had to pass through a broken section of fence along the way, and occasionally hid from what looked like giant, mechanical flying insects. What were those things? Where was he? Being an ambassador his diplomatic immunity should keep him from being prosecuted for tresspassing, he thought, but he sincerely doubted that it conferred invulnerability to plasma cannons.

He became very worried as he continued. Not for himself - he was a trained fighter - but for his nephew. What if he had been caught by one of those things, or...

Determination drove such contemplation from his mind, and he continued running, at a more human pace than Sonic's. Eventually he came to a large clearing. That was strange, there was some sort of large metal object here, with a couple of patches of color inside it.

He approached it cautiously, and saw what looked like a large, pink bird speaking softly to a smaller, blue one. Unlike Sonic, however, his uncle noticed that the blue bird was unconscious, likely injured. His experienced mind recognized them as Flickies; Class A, to be precise. Intelligent birds. What were they doing here?

The pink one turned around in shock, facing him. "You're back!" Her eyes then took in his moustache, lighter color and somewhat older features. "Oh. You're not him. Who are you?" He was about to tell her, but the hyperactive bird continued quickly. "I'm Cumulus, and this is my brother, and I think he's hurt, really bad!"

Sir Charles walked over to take a look. Sure enough, the bird was unconscious, and one wing was twisted at an unnatural angle.

Cumulus continued speaking. "There was a really mean bird-Mobian, and he captured us just yesterday - he almost got my sister Nina, too! - and my brother tried to make him let us go, and he hit him and broke his wing, and just tossed us in here!" She was on the verge of tears.

The hedgehog awkwardly tried to comfort her, but was cut off again. "And then this nice hedgehog came by and he let us out, and then that mean bird grabbed him, and-"

Sir Charles finally interrupted her. "What did you say? What happened to my Sonic?"

"Tachyon - he's the mean bird - grabbed him, and tried to drag him away, and then Sonic whacked him with a flower," she giggled nervously at this, "and he was sneezing and everything and then Sonic ran away, and..."

He wasn't paying attention anymore. So Sonic was here! He was going to ask her which way he went, but his eyes fell on her injured brother. He sighed inwardly, desperately wanting to go after his nephew, but the Flicky obviously needed medical attention right away.

She was still talking, but he interrupted her. "Come on." Carefully cradling the blue Flicky in his hands, he invited Cumulus to hop onto his shoulder. She did so, and he took off for the park at the fastest speed he could manage without worsening the poor bird's condition. His sister's claws dug into the hedgehog's shoulder as he ran, but the pain hardly registered; he had to balance speed and careful positioning, not to mention his continual glancing around at the sky to look out for those mechanical insects.

***

Jerome Stevenson sat in his car at the time, radio and air conditioner on, eating a mixture of chili and hot dogs.

From a plate.

With a fork.

The hedgehogs had prepared chili dogs frequently, but he had always found the dish to be far too messy, and adopted this method of eating them instead. From what he remembered, it irritated Sonic to no end, but he wasn't around right now, so...

The radio was tuned to an AM talk station, currently occupied by a middle-aged male newscaster. He sounded almost bored, Jerome thought, but at least he wasn't projecting artificial cheerfulness. "The WaveStar satellite, scheduled to go online this afternoon, is predicted to be the cheapest, cleanest source of power available. Operating by collecting solar energy on an astounding one hundred eighteen separate panels, it will then beam the energy to a receiver station near Starlight City..." He wasn't paying attention. It was almost fascinating, but he had already read about it extensively. Besides, he was more worried about Sir Charles and his nephew. What was taking them so long?

He looked up from his plate in time to see a blue hedgehog running up to the car. Sonic? No, it wasn't nearly fast enough. It was definitely Sir Charles... and what were those things he had on him?

The hedgehog frantically ran up to the passenger-side door, opening it and almost jumping in without even an explanation. "What's going on? Where's Sonic?"

He didn't answer, just told Jerome that they needed to get to a hospital right now. And was it just him, or had the bird's breathing gone shallower? Jerome complied, quickly dumping the disposable plate in a bag he had set aside for that purpose, and just as quickly removing his vehicle from the parking lot. The nearest hospital was half an hour away, in Starlight City... perhaps Sir Charles would explain himself on the way.


	2. Marble Zone

Chapter 2

Marble Zone

-------------

Sonic was ten, maybe fifteen miles away by the time he stopped. Walking, trying to regain his breath after running for so long, he looked around at his surroundings. Here everything seemed different; evergreen trees clung to distant hills next to marble buildings overgrown with weeds, while the grass nearby was littered with chunks of rocky debris. He could still see the ocean to the north, but he was farther away and it was becoming difficult to make out details on the mountains beyond.

He was exploring more confidently now, having effectively defeated or bypassed all opposition he'd come across. Hunger, though, began to make itself known, and he was starting to seriously think about returning. Just a little while longer, he told himself. This was cool! This was just like in the movies! Not to mention video games. He remembered all the times when he invited his friends over and they would play on Jerome's computer. Wait 'till they hear about this!

Looking around, Sonic suddenly remembered the device he had snatched from his captor during his moment of incapacitation. It was warm in his hand, after having been carried for so long, first by Tachyon and now by him.

The teleporter - though at that point he still did not know what it was - was a small, handheld device with few controls, owing to Shadow's modifications and simplifications. A small box was welded to the bottom of the unit; six indentations comprised the entirety of its features, one of them with a green gemstone of some sort inside. But the most intriguing feature was the main unit's tiny video screen.

In superb resolution and detail it depicted the local landscape perfectly, and superimposed on top of it was... what? Some sort of bluish mist. There were words, too. Close proximity - 89% probable? What did that mean?

He pressed a few buttons on the unit, trying to figure out what it was for. In response, something seemed to shimmer in the air in front of him.

Sonic looked up in time to see reality fold in on itself, a giant torus or ring of some sort expanding in midair; a quiet whooshing noise audible as the air was pushed, pulled and twisted by the distortion. He stepped backwards quickly, reflexively turning away and putting his arms in front of his face.

But the ring did not... eat him? Well, he wasn't really sure what he expected it to do, he'd never seen anything even remotely like it. Looking back and cautiously lowering his arms, he saw that it had ceased to expand at about four feet in diameter, and now just silently floated there. It was a window, or door, Sonic thought. Nervousness being replaced by excitement, he stepped forward to look inside.

The human mind is not capable of properly interpreting the features of the five-dimensional landscape that Sonic saw, and his Mobian one didn't do too much better. Shapes floated randomly in what might be air, their geometry so convoluted that staring at them for too long gave him a headache; and both sky and ground had been replaced by some sort of odd pattern. Unable to understand what it was seeing, his brain replaced the constantly shifting background with more familiar images. He thought he saw giant fish swimming through distant space... or were they birds?

He closed his eyes and shook his head briefly, and then continued looking at the wonders of Space-Time Five. "Waaaaay past cool," he said to no one in particular.

As he gazed through the ring, he thought he could make out a more three-dimensional object. Yes, there it was; a perfectly carved, blue gemstone, not twenty feet away. Looking down at the small, green gem inside its indentation in the teleporter, he began to understand what was going on...

***

Tachyon flew high above the ground at almost three-digit speeds, his second eyelids occasionally blinking dust out of his eyes. With a simple call back to the sensors in Robotnik's complex, he had been able to trace the teleporter's signal to the marble ruins a few miles to the northwest of the Green Hill Wilderness Zone.

He visually scanned the ground, eyes hard with determination. Just a few minutes ago he had failed, utterly failed Shadow for the first time in he couldn't remember how many years, and on such a simple matter.

He would not do so again.

His gaze took in the grass-covered ground, dotted with stone wreckage and - there he was! The hedgehog had already activated the teleporter, and was intently peering into the portal.

Tachyon smiled with satisfaction as he pulled around to his right, just barely keeping from flying over Sonic and into his view. Putting some distance between himself and his target, he then executed a quick 180-degree turn and brought himself into a dive, claws ready. Whatever hovercraft-destroying abilities the hedgehog possessed, unless he had steel plating or a forcefield there was no way that he would live longer than ten seconds after Tachyon commenced his attack. Assuming he intended to kill - Shadow wanted Sonic alive. Fortunately, he could cripple or disable just as quickly.

Of course, the falcon noted with dismay, this was all assuming that Sonic didn't enter the portal like he just did. Driven on by both anger and hunting instinct, he continued his dive, aiming right for the portal-

Which disappeared a fraction of a second before Tachyon would have entered it. He pulled up sharply, his lower claws whipped by grass and brushing the dirt. Without the benefit of Sonic's energy barrier, the experience was painful even at a 'mere' two hundred miles per hour, especially as the back claw of his right leg was ripped loose when it dug too deeply into the ground.

A piercing, avian shriek was heard. It took all of Tachyon's concentration to reduce 

speed and land safely.

Years of training - not to mention extensive first-hand experience with pain, much of it provided by Shadow - permitted him to brush himself off, walk to and obtain the missing claw, and then retrieve a tiny first aid kit from his aerodynamic belt, calm face masking his pain. Placing the claw in one of his belt's pockets, he then sat down on a nearby rock and bandaged the wound with a spray foam that was, according to the packaging, guaranteed to stop bleeding on all minor injuries or your money back!

This is hardly a minor injury, Tachyon thought to himself as the substance solidified. Now I won't even be able to grasp anything with my right leg until my claw can be re-attached. And I can't do that until I've captured the hedgehog, AND the teleporter, AND the emeralds. Looking at the ground, he saw the somewhat messy trail his foot had left before he had temporarily healed it. Just as the adrenalin dissipated from his body, the hunter's instinct cleared from his mind and the sight sickened him.

The foam fully solidified, he stood up, placing the medical kit back in his belt as he did so. His stance was somewhat less even than before; at least the missing claw shouldn't interfere with his flying. If he recalled the teleporter's co-ordinates correctly, this part of Space-Time Five contained a Chaos Emerald... the blue one. He would just wait in the area until Sonic came out. Perhaps he would visit the ruins. The hedgehog could return anywhere within a mile or more, and Tachyon hadn't been in the ruins in a long time.

With a brief transmission to Robotnik's computers to tell him when the sentry drones' sensors spotted the hedgehog - or, more easily detected due to its unique energy signature, the teleporter - he flew in the direction of the large buildings several hundred feet away.

***

"These are what??" Jerome briefly shot a confused look at Sir Charles as he drove his car over the low hills outside Starlight City.

"They're Flickies. Very rare, intelligent birds. The legends say," Jerome somehow knew that any sentence that began that way would only add to his confusion, "that they live on an island that shifts between dimensions, but some of them supposedly migrated to the mainland a long time ago."

"Yes!" Cumulus affirmed from the back of the car, next to her brother. "And we have a couple of nice little villages, and they're all outside the human colonies, but then this really mean human started sending all these robots and they've been capturing us and-"

Jerome sighed in resignation. "And one of them is injured?" he said, cutting Cumulus off. It didn't seem to discourage her, because she spoke again. "Yes! There was this really mean bird, I mean a Mobian bird, and his name is Tachyon, and he's really fast too, and he captured us, and my brother Stratus tried to make him let us go, and," the hyperactive bird actually paused for breath, "and then he hit him and now he's hurt real bad!"

"Why would anyone want to capture you?"

The Flicky took a deep breath... Jerome found this ominous, given her previous verbosity. "I don't know, but there were other Flickies in that prison-box-thingy with us, and I saw two robots come up to it, and one of them opened a hatch, and it grabbed one of us, and she was screaming, and they put her inside that robot!" Cumulus' voice reached a fever pitch at this, but she stopped, still too shaken by the whole experience to speak at greater length about it.

The driver widened his eyes while still concentrating on the road ahead of him, and Sir Charles broke the silence. "But why? What sense does it make to put birds in robots?"

"It makes perfect sense," Jerome said. "At least, if you're kind of sadistic. Computers have raw processing power, but there are plenty of things that organic brains are much better at. Abstract reasoning, intuition, instinct... so, if you have actual lifeforms behind your machines, you're one step ahead of the competition. And the Flickies are even better - they combine sentient intellect with helplessness and small size." He described his theory with almost the same casualness that he would use when discussing a new line of handheld computers; this whole matter was so strange that it almost didn't even register as real, though his heart rate raised slightly as he pondered the ramifications of the Flicky's description.

"Isn't that illegal?"

"Do the lawmakers even know that Flickies exist?"

Sir Charles sighed. Cumulus was quiet now; the last twenty-four hours had obviously taken their toll on her and she was falling asleep on the back seat. "We've got to do _something_ about this..."

"I agree."

"And what about Sonic?"

Rapidly becoming more anxious, Jerome was nevertheless able to conceal it. "I don't know. Do you even know what that place was?"

"I think I saw a sign on the fence... something about a military installation."

"Then we go to the base and have a word with the bureaucrats after we've taken care of those birds."

The hedgehog sighed again. He knew little about human government, but he did know that their bureaucracy was notoriously slow. Unfortunately, he didn't have any better ideas.

***

Sonic stepped out of the portal and into the ruins proper. Large, marble buildings in a quasi-grecian style surrounded him, their huge pillars supporting triangular roofs with flattened tops. The air was very hot; he wondered why.

As he looked around himself, the portal closed behind him. He was still trying to 

find footing on the unmoving ground, after his disorienting experience beyond the portal. But not only did he have that blue gem, he'd figured out that he was supposed to put it in a little slot next to the green one, and had been able to make the teleporter return him. This was so cool!

He caught a brief glimpse of something moving through the ruins. A grayish shape, with wings of some sort, walking through the area - Tachyon! Still feeling invulnerable, he nevertheless dove behind a broken segment of wall. Perhaps he would spy on the falcon.

Moving with as much silence as he could manage, he somehow avoided detection and actually got within perhaps twenty feet of Tachyon. The bird's hearing was not quite as good as his sight; in any event, he gave no sign of having noticed Sonic.

After a short while Tachyon stopped abruptly as a voice issued from his communicator. Sonic had heard that voice before, when the falcon was trying to capture him. "Tachyon? Report."

The Mobian addressed thusly lifted his arm to his beak. His voice was very timid. "I'm afraid I haven't located 'Priority Hedgehog' yet, sir. Well, actually, I did earlier, but he got away."

"That thing about the flower?" Shadow sounded disgusted.

"No, I saw him again later." That was news to Sonic. He hadn't thought he had been spotted; he would have to be more careful.

To Sonic's surprise, Shadow did not start ranting like the man in the hovercraft had. Instead, the cat rescinded Tachyon's orders to capture his prey alive, and quietly told him exactly what he wanted him to do when he found Sonic, in very graphic detail. His voice was low enough that it could barely be heard; wouldn't have been audible at all, but the only other sound in the area was a strange, rapid beating noise that the hedgehog realized was his own heart.

He watched, terrified, as the peregrine falcon unconsciously flexed his lower claws - claws which were, he saw, quite sharp and more than an inch long, though it was hard to gauge size at that distance. His gaze remained on them for so long that he didn't notice Tachyon become anxious and rigid at his master's command, fearful eyes glancing around as if searching for something else to concentrate on.

Now Sonic was scared. The incident with the hovercraft came back to his memory in perfect detail, and he remembered the murderous look on its driver's face. These people fully intended to do what was being described, and would, too, if they caught him. He backed away, but his movements were more clumsy than before as a result of the adrenalin in his system...

"Sir," Tachyon interrupted all of a sudden, eyes quickly hardening as he gazed about the area. "I think I may have just spotted the target," he continued, voice now colder than before.

Sonic froze in the shadow of a large rock. Hadn't he read that birds of prey had excellent eyesight? He should have seen that coming, he thought, his heart pounding so hard that it was almost impossible to keep still.

***

His discomfort at Shadow's detail quickly forgotten as he caught a brief glimpse of blue among the ruins a second before it had moved out of his field of vision, Tachyon slowly scanned the area with his sharp eyes. What with the debris and wrecked buildings, there were plenty of places to hide, but surely his target couldn't stay hidden indefinitely.

He walked through the ruins carefully, trying to get a better view of Sonic, ready to take flight at the first sign of movement. Or before... he could probably see better from up higher. Shadow, however, interrupted his train of thought. "You're sure he's nearby?"

Without moving his eyes from their sweep of the area, his left wing lifted the attached communicator and he responded in the affirmative.

His master spoke, this time not directed to Tachyon. "Security drones, converge on sector..." The falcon cut him off. "No. Not yet. They will break my concentration; perhaps flush the target out elsewhere, away from me. Keep them patrolling, though." Shadow hardly minded his aide's contradiction. Tachyon was very well trained, and he trusted his judgment on these matters.

"Whatever you do, I want that creature's remains delivered to me. Along with the teleporter, and the emeralds. 'Priority Hedgehog'," he spat, "will die; and tonight, so will the humans."

"Yes, sir."

***

Sonic continued to listen to their conversation, sitting next to that rock, arms wrapped around his knees to keep them from knocking. He found it very difficult to do anything else, being almost completely paralyzed with fear. Just the day before he had been playing kickball with the other children in Mobotropolis; now he was being hunted by a professional killer. One who had found him earlier, without his knowledge, and could likely do so again at any time. Shadow's words ran through his head over and over again, benefitting from his terrified imagination.

He fought to control his breathing, trying to keep from gasping so hard that he was discovered. And what was that? The voice on the communicator just said that the humans would die too. At this the scenes played out in his mind became even more horrible. He never really liked the humans, but he didn't want them to be destroyed! He hadn't even known any of them very well, except for Jerome. Somehow it was hard to dislike him so much now...

There was the faint noise of claws clicking on top of the rock he was hiding behind. If the fear he had previously known had paralyzed him, what he experienced right then turned him to ice. His breathing was no longer difficult to control; it had frozen with the rest of his body, halted in mid-breath.

Looking up, he saw a cold, avian face, which casually tilted downward to look at him.

With a sudden burst of willpower, he forced his muscles from their frozen state and jumped from a sitting position directly into a run, his first steps clumsy as he almost tripped over the debris.

***

Tachyon flew over to one of the larger rocks, almost silent save for a quiet rushing of air. He was sure he'd seen the hedgehog here... landing, his eyes caught a brief glimpse of movement below him.

He looked down and saw his formerly overconfident prey curled in what was almost a fetal position, returning the falcon's stare with wide eyes. If Sonic hadn't been his target he might have felt pity; but no, when Shadow wanted someone dead Tachyon locked into hunting mode and the target ceased to be anything more than an unusually mobile object, in his mind.

The hedgehog jumped up and ran away at a rapid but not unheard of pace, stumbling somewhat over the rocks. Less than a second later Tachyon flew after him, and began to match his speed. He hardly even consciously thought about the process; training, instinct and reflex all combined to virtually automate his routine. He would overtake his target, and then descend, tearing it apart. Somewhere in the back of his mind he was glad that this whole mess would be over and he would have Shadow's favor again.

But he did not overtake his target. In fact, it rapidly accelerated. Very rapidly accelerated. In mere seconds it was hundreds of feet ahead of Tachyon.

His instinct was to go faster and overtake Sonic, but then, he had never been forced to deal with a hedgehog that could break the sound barrier, before. Not knowing of a better plan, he simply continued even as his astonishment grew and eventually pushed reflex away altogether. What was going on??

Completely baffled at this turn of events, he simply slowed down and came to a stop, landing on the grass and watching the hedgehog enter a large, ruined building a couple hundred yards off. His amazement was so complete that the sight of Sonic negotiating the steps and turns to enter the building - all at six hundred miles per hour - hardly added to it. He'd certainly seen some strange things in Shadow's service, but never quite like this. How was it possible? Making such sharp turns, accelerating so quickly; it should break him into a thousand pieces!

Should he tell his master about it? No, not until it was absolutely necessary. Shadow was already filled with his characteristic cold rage, and this little revelation might snap what control he had left.

Still balancing without one of his claws, he pondered the situation for a moment or two. Entering that building had been, overall, a bad idea on Sonic's part. Much of the old city was underground, and that would be a disadvantage for Tachyon, but he thought he remembered how to work the electronics. Hopefully they were still intact after all that orbital bombardment, being underground and all.

But how to find the hedgehog in the first place? His senses weren't designed for stalking his prey through a maze, especially when said prey was so incredibly fast. An idea coming to him, he transmitted an order for Robotnik's computers to send a few drones, and then entered the building just a couple of minutes after Sonic.

***

"SHADOW! GET OVER HERE!"

Robotnik took his fist off of the transmit button, and stomped back to his hovercraft. Inside one of his complex's hangars, the maintenance drones were repairing it, not to mention outfitting it for battle. A heavy plasma cannon was mounted on the bottom of the nearly spherical machine; that stupid hedgehog may be fast, Robotnik thought, but he was also unarmed. Nothing had ever survived an intrusion into this facility, and he would not be the first.

Shadow quietly stepped into the room, padded boots making no discernable noise. The look on his face was that of carefully concealed anger; his hands pressed against each other so that he would not be tempted to lash out.

The human was somewhat startled as his feline associate softly asked, "What do you want?" He hadn't seen Shadow coming. Shadow knew that this would not improve Robotnik's mood, but cared little.

Sure enough, Ivo became irritated at this, but he was too upset with 'Priority Hedgehog' for it to make that much of a difference. In an almost growling voice, he queried, "Do you know anything about a certain blue hedgehog that was recently spotted on the complex?"

Shadow continued to maintain a neutral expression, almost resembling a slab of cold, black obsidian. "Yes. Tachyon has been pursuing him for most of the morning. Sonic, as he has identified himself, is currently located in the marble ruins to the northwest."

Sonic. So that was the vile hedgehog's name. "And why didn't you tell me this?"

"I thought you were busy, and did not wish to disturb you." It was at least half true. Shadow knew that Robotnik had been quite busy getting beaten up by Sonic and then limping his hovercraft back there. He genuinely preferred that the human stay as far away as possible; if he got to Sonic first, he would also find out about the teleporter, not to mention control it and quite possibly end his perception of Shadow as useful.

The doctor did not quite know how to respond. Shadow's apparent calm only angered him further. "Well, from now on, you are to keep me informed as to his location. Is that clear?"

"Perfectly."

A drone interrupted the exchange to report, in its mechanical voice, that the upgrade was completed. Without another word to Shadow, Robotnik climbed into his hovercraft and launched from the hangar. He could perfectly well send his sentry robots - did so, in fact - but he was hoping to find Sonic before them. It would be so much more satisfying that way.

***

Sonic ran through the ruins, jumping clear over obstructions larger than he was, bounding up immense stairs and charging into a huge building. He continued on through its hallways, descending, making several quick turns and finally slowing to a gradual stop when it became so dark that he couldn't see where he was going anymore.

He started panting for breath. He hadn't run for a particularly long time, but he had pushed himself very hard and was now completely exhausted, finally sitting down on the cold, stone floor. The teleporter, still in his grasp - so secure, after his panicked flight, that he thought he would need a crowbar to pry his fingers off of it - emitted the only light in the room, its screen glowing brighter than the compressed emeralds embedded below.

Several minutes of panting later, Sonic was pondering the situation. He knew that he couldn't stay there, but he didn't dare run back. That bird had been following him, and he knew, thanks to Shadow, exactly what would happen if he were caught. But where could he go? He had no idea where the passageways led.

Of course! The teleporter! His gasping reduced to a much calmer level by now, he raised the screen to where he could see it.

The hedgehog's eyes were by now quite accustomed to the dark after sitting there for so long, and he squinted at the screen until he could clearly make out what it was displaying. No matter what he tried, he couldn't get it to open another portal, but he could still see a map of the area in near-perfect clarity, this time sans bluish mist. It didn't show the whole floor plan, just the area around him, but he was sure he could use it to get out; whether as a flashlight, a map, or both.

***

Tachyon activated the tiny, dim light he carried as he walked through the dark corridors of the same building. He was fairly sure that he remembered where the generator was, and he was pleased to note that despite the surface wreckage the underground complex remained essentially intact.

Though, he thought to himself as he stopped just a half second away from stepping over a ledge he hadn't seen and into a pool of lava perhaps six feet below, it seems that there was some damage... carefully pulling his claws back from the edge, he leaned over slightly. The lava's heat could be easily felt on his face even at this distance; its presence also explained why he had been so hot.

He examined the pool in dismay. It spanned thirty or forty feet in length, with a ceiling only half as high. Perhaps the bombardment had loosened faults or something - he didn't know enough about geology to really pin a concrete reason down, but apparently the lower levels had been filled with lava. This would complicate matters...

Spreading his wings, he jumped off of the ledge and flew across the lava pool. It was an agonizing process to expose his wing membranes to the intense heat. Once he was done he ended up spending several minutes flapping his wings frantically to cool them down, generating just enough lift to keep pushing himself upward several inches at a time even as he tried to steady himself.

Still sore, he continued onward.

***

Sonic checked the teleporter's on-screen map again. He was trying to continue through the building, but the hallways kept turning and he had ended up backtracking several times. Perhaps if he took the corridor to his right it would turn back around and...

What looked like torches on the wall spontaneously ignited. The light was much lower than it was outside, but Sonic nevertheless found himself squinting again. For the first time, he noticed that he was standing on a circular, green, glass segment of floor, as it ascended and threatened to press him into the ceiling.

He quickly jumped off. What had happened? Power had been restored, apparently. How old were these ruins, anyway?? Probably it was Tachyon who had turned the power back on... some of his fear returned as he realized this. The falcon could be within ten feet of him and he wouldn't know it.

He heard an odd fluttering noise. Wings flapping, the noise echoing so much that he wasn't sure where it was coming from. Adrenalin surged into his system, and he took off around a corner...

...coming face-to-face with some sort of machine. He jumped out of the way, and turned around to get a better look. It was a mechanical bat of some sort, with a wingspan less than half Sonic's height. As he watched, it flew past and attached itself to the roof, watching him with expressionless eyes.

***

Tachyon was about to leave the generator room when his communicator resonated with the scratchy, metallic, male voice of Robotnik's computer. "Priority Hedgehog detected," it began, and then spewed out a list of co-ordinates. He wasn't quite sure how to interpret the information, but he thought it meant that Sonic was in the generator machinery itself, near the large pistons. As he recalled, Shadow had based some of the Chaos Engine's design on this facility's equipment.

The low ceiling and twisting corridors conspiring to prevent flight, Tachyon ran for the indicated area as fast as his injured foot would permit. His plan had worked so far - the drones had located Sonic.

***

The machine just hung there, still staring at nothing in particular. Sonic wasn't quite sure what to do with it. What was it supposed to be? A combat robot? No, it hadn't attacked him. Maybe a scout drone.

He slowly backed away, and as soon as he did so the robot detached itself from the ceiling and followed. This was beginning to worry Sonic; he finally took action, spindashing it and effectively reducing it to a cloud of mechanical debris that rained down on the floor noisily.

The hedgehog began to worry that the noise would attract the attention of his pursuer, but as he turned around to face the wreckage his attention immediately became more focused on a greenish, spherical forcefield. Floating in midair, drifting around like a soap bubble, it suspended a small rabbit inside, which looked as if it genuinely did not like being there.

Sonic watched in awe and confusion as the field collapsed, depositing the animal on the floor. It quickly hopped away with the energy of one who had been confined in a metal shell for weeks on end.

What, he thought, was that all about? However, his thoughts were interrupted as he heard the uncomfortably familiar sound of claws tapping on the stone floor, distant but gaining in volume.

He didn't know which direction Tachyon lay in, but he took off down the corridor anyway.

***

Tachyon heard the noise as well, all too clearly. Normally accustomed to the clinking, he began to be irritated at it, knowing that it would give his position away. And, sure enough, as he walked through now fairly well-lit hallways he heard the sound of Sonic's rapid acceleration. Darn it!

Obviously, pursuing the hedgehog would not work. No, he would have to be more subtle. Which way was the security nexus? He thought he remembered; he used to live in this complex, after all.

***

Much as Tachyon had a short while ago, Sonic brought himself to a quick halt as he came to another pool of lava. No, this was more like a lake; a vast, underground expanse, with a ceiling several stories high. The heat was intense, and he stepped back several feet, wiping sweat off of his forehead.

How was he supposed to get across that? he wondered. He checked the teleporter's map, but it refused to display anything but a bright red haze. Sonic almost whacked its side a couple of times, to try to get it to work, but his eyes fell on the words "Close proximity - 94% probable." Wait a minute...

He sighed, remembering that the teleporter had refused to activate when he had tried to open a portal elsewhere in the catacombs. But what if it had been programmed to only open near one of those gems?

Brightening at the thought, he pointed it out over the lava and pressed a button. Nothing happened, anticlimatically enough, so he brought it closer so as to see its surface and selected a different button. Once again, the universe almost noiselessly folded in on itself.

Sonic jumped in, not hesitating this time. Hopefully when he got out he would be across the lava; he would have to look carefully to make sure he didn't end up over the lava or inside a wall or something.

***

Jerome and Sir Charles had tried a hospital to begin with, but they were referred to a veterinary clinic on the outskirts of town. The decision was not made out of malice or spite - quite simply, nobody at the hospital knew what to do with the injured bird. Fortunately, one of the clerks knew of a vet who had dealt with the species before.

And, sure enough, he had. Doctor Arnold, as his tag indicated, quickly began Stratus' examination, his sister insisting on staying nearby even though he would likely have to remain at least overnight. The fee was a tad steep, in Jerome's opinion, but the doctor waived it, saying that it had been a long time since he'd seen a Flicky. He refused to speak any further on the matter; Jerome found this odd, but didn't have much time to dwell on it as Sonic's anxious uncle almost dragged him back to the car so they could pay a visit to the military base.

***

Tachyon flew over the same lava lake that Sonic had come to, fairly sure that he was going the right way. The heat was doing a number on his wings again; he was thankful for the high ceiling, and maintained as great an altitude as possible, the tips of his feathers occasionally brushing the marble above him.

However, even as high up as he was Tachyon still felt as if he were in an oven. For goodness' sake, he thought, I'm a raptor - a bird of prey - not a turkey! About halfway across the expanse he landed on top of a section of wall that jutted out several feet; just enough to block the searing heat and permit him to rest for a minute or two.

Sitting against the wall, practically sprawled out in exhaustion, his rest was interrupted by an odd vibration coming from the stone around him.

Tachyon jumped to his feet, ignoring his aching muscles. What was that? He heard a sharp, incredibly loud grinding noise coming from the ceiling, echoing throughout the cavern; and then the vibrating increased, and cracks began to appear in the walls around him, and huge chunks of marble fell out of the ceiling and landed in the lava with a splash...

He pressed himself against the wall to keep from being hit, but the cracks were widening and the section he was standing on began to come loose, shifting its position somewhat. Well, he thought, this is just wonderful... With supreme effort, Tachyon forced himself into the air again, adrenalin restoring his energy, flying for the end of the cavern at speeds he normally reserved for pursuing his prey outdoors.

As he flew the noise subsided somewhat, and the falling rocks became smaller and smaller - fortunately the ceiling had not collapsed. Reaching the end of the lake, he set his relieved self down on the floor, and was rewarded for his efforts by being struck in the head by a stone roughly the size of a golf ball.

Tachyon was not knocked unconscious by the blow, but he sincerely wished that he were as he rolled around on the warm marble in agony, wings pressed to the sides of his Mobian skull. This situation is hardly improving, he thought, surprised that he was even capable of cognition at the time.

Head still throbbing with pain, the falcon lifted himself from the floor and continued for the security nexus. What had happened back there, he wondered? I wouldn't be surprised if it was one of that idiot Robotnik's experiments.

***

A ring-shaped vortex appeared in one of the underground city's hallways, set at an odd angle to the floor. Sonic hopped out of it, carrying a teleporter the restriction field of which now had a reddish glow to accompany the green and blue lights already present.

Even easier than last time, he thought. The emerald had been less than ten feet away. However, the first time he opened the portal it had started grinding and making a terrible noise, and only led to solid marble. Whoops...

Now, however, he was back on solid ground - or floor, as the case may be. Checking the teleporter's map, he was pleased to see that he was near the surface. Encouraged, Sonic strode down the corridor.

There was a sudden, electronic whine right next to him, like a giant capacitor charging up. He turned to see a small port set in the wall, and starting to glow deep inside. Not pausing to think, he dived out of the way as a burst of superheated, ionized hydrogen slammed into the spot where he had been standing.

The turret swiveled to face its target, and fired again, but Sonic was already several hundred feet down the long hallway.

***

Tachyon slumped forward in his seat, elbows on the console and chin over his arms. This room was as dimly lit as the rest of the complex, which didn't help his mood any. He was beyond anger - the situation was completely hopeless. How was he supposed to capture prey that could elude his every attempt, dodging everything from his own highly-trained self to a plasma cannon?

No, he told himself. Sit back up and think of something. You'll come up with an idea; you have to. Mobius needs Shadow. Shadow needs the Chaos Emeralds. And you need to get them for him.

Besides; if you don't, he will torture you in ways that have been banned by every civilized country.

He forced himself into a more upright position and stared into the monitors along the wall above the console. There was an entire battery of cannons along the hallway Sonic had run across, but he could still see the hedgehog, this time on the external monitor. He had made it out of the complex, defeated the security system Tachyon had assisted in renovating all those years ago.

But wait... what was this? A giant, metal egg? No, it was Robotnik's hovercraft. And Tachyon had thought that he would never be happy to see it.

But what if Robotnik found the teleporter after he defeated the hedgehog? Tachyon leaped from his chair and ran out.

***

Sonic stood on a small hill not thirty feet from the place where that hallway had opened up to the outdoors. The wind had picked up somewhat while he was underground, but he didn't mind. Facing into the breeze, breathing the fresh air in energetically, he smiled. He'd gotten out! He'd made it!

But now where should he go? He stood there a moment or two, thinking. He was still alive, but if he lingered excessively that situation might change without warning. No, better to find his uncle and tell him what was going on. Uncle Chuck would know what to do - he knew everything.

But where was he? Still at the park? But it had been hours, not to mention that Sonic wasn't particularly eager to try to retrace his steps... maybe they'd gone back to Jerome's house. Sonic thought he could see buildings, human buildings, in the distance. He would run back to the Overlander city, and find the house from there.

He heard an oddly familiar mechanical humming noise, and as he looked up he saw that hovercraft again. This time the driver spoke, with a distinctly sinister tone in his voice. And he was smiling - that probably wasn't a good sign. "Greetings, Sonic." Sonic? How did he know my name, he thought?

"Who are YOU supposed to be?", Sonic yelled up to the man, who continued bringing his hovercraft closer until it was a mere ten feet away. In the same unpleasant voice, he declared, "I am Doctor Robotnik: the greatest scientific mind on Mobius, and its future ruler. Not to mention," he chuckled as he powered the heavy plasma cannon on the underside of his vehicle, "the last living thing that you are ever going to see."

The hedgehog didn't wait to see what came next. Instead, he ran, horizontally so as to throw off the hovercraft's targetting systems. After only a dozen feet or so, he stopped - there was a neatly constructed, stone circle set into the ground around another pool of lava perhaps six feet wide, dry grass and pine needles partially obscuring the neat lines carved into the rock. This looked to be man-made, or artificially constructed at least, but Sonic didn't have time to ponder it; that "Robotnik" person looked like he was aiming his cannon at him!

He jumped clear over the pool, landing on the other side as Robotnik fired. The blasts landed on the rock, briefly igniting the debris scattered across it before it was swept away by the wind, flames blown out.

The human cursed for perhaps the hundredth time that day, and brought his hovercraft closer to get a better shot. As he approached the lava, Sonic got a running start and spindashed into the front of the vehicle, disabling its headlights and ripping a noticeable gash in the armor.

Enraged, Robotnik fired again, but his blast went wild and landed in the lava. Before the cannon had a chance to recharge, Sonic took the time to aim and spindashed again, effectively crushing it.

The hedgehog was only able to get in one more hit after that, cracking the hovercraft's windshield, before Robotnik flew it away into the sky. Not wanting to give him a chance to reconsider his retreat, Sonic ran off in the direction of the human city at roughly the speed of the average jet airliner.

***

Having watched the entire battle unnoticed from the underground hallway's opening, Tachyon dropped to his knees and placed his hands over his face, trying to keep from breaking down completely.


	3. Spring Yard Zone

Chapter 3

Spring Yard Zone

------------------

Sonic continued running for several minutes before he came to the outskirts of Starlight City. Before he entered the city proper, though, he stopped to check the teleporter; sure enough, there was an orangish glow surrounding the landscape on its tiny screen.

A fourth Chaos Emerald now contained in the unit, he continued. He had to slow down upon entering the city; no sense in getting hit by a car. The immediate vicinity was suburban, with perfectly manicured lawns in front of houses the floor plans of which only differed slightly.

Fifteen minutes of walking later, Sonic was getting discouraged. The houses all looked alike, and he'd been going so fast the last time he'd seen Jerome's residence that he had barely gotten a look at the exterior. I could have walked right past it, he realized, without even knowing I'd done so!

He stood on the sidewalk, pondering his options against the audio background of someone running a lawnmower several houses down. Going back to the Green Hill zone is still a bad idea, the hedgehog thought. Maybe if they're back at his house already, I can call them on the phone! Should I ask someone if I can use theirs? No, those kids back at the playground were mean enough. I certainly don't want to meet their parents. Maybe I can find a pay phone if I go downtown...

Sonic started jogging towards the center of Starlight City.

***

Alexandria Hague was, according to the human colonists' definition, a very successful woman. Only in her early thirties, she was already a general in their understaffed military, with great responsibility, pay, and prestige alike. Not only had she survived the Mobian War, she was also awarded for her efforts during it.

Her parents had encouraged her all through her early life. Well, drove her might be more accurate, she thought... always saying that she could be anything she wanted to be, while subtly hinting that if she wanted to be anything that didn't have a five-figure income she would be disowned. In the early twenty-first century almost all women had some employment outside the home, and those who decided to do otherwise were looked down upon - now, in the colonies, to want to be a stay-at-home mother was scandalous.

She decided to attend the Colonial Guard Academy and subsequently go on a brief tour of duty, secretly planning to marry someone along the way - preferably after her parents had finished paying for her education. Just a year out of the academy she got engaged to another young officer...

And then the Mobian War started. Both Alexandria and her fiancee participated in the initial assault on Lower Mobotropolis.

She should have seen it coming, she thought. For years the media had been steadily becoming more anti-Mobian. Gradually new laws were introduced penalizing Mobians living in the human colonies; and then, finally, the President declared war over a clearly manufactured diplomatic misunderstanding.

She'd hated the war from the beginning. Being forced to go into battle and kill aliens for a power-hungry dictator. Watching the soldiers under her command - they actually seemed to _revel_ in the slaughter after years of television propagandizing. Marching through the city, a city she'd vacationed in when she was little, and destroying the woefully under-equipped police forces. The armor, quickly becoming uncomfortable in the humid heat. The faces of terrified Mobians fleeing their approach. The heaviness of the rifle she'd carried; not quite as clean as plasma-based weaponry, but cheaper. Not to mention the negative effect on Mobian morale to see their companions die in that particular manner.

What about her morale? She still had nightmares about the war...

It had started out like that, anyway. Then, once they recovered from their initial shock, the Mobians hit back. Hard. Those few in their number who had been trained for warfare were very good at their jobs. Their warriors - especially the seemingly anachronistic "knights" - were adept at guerrila tactics, and almost exclusively employed nonlethal weaponry.

The entire human garrison in Mobotropolis was driven out in several hours, and while there were few casualties on the Overlander side, her fiancee joined their number shortly after he was run over by a Mobian armored personnel carrier. She knew that the Mobians couldn't really be held responsible - that it was almost definitely an accident - but for a long time afterwards you couldn't have told her that. Even now, she preferred not to be around them, and definitely wasn't looking forward to attending tomorrow's peace conference.

The unit under Alexandria's command had done remarkably well in the war. Holding captured territory long after other garrisons would have been defeated. Devising brilliant counters to Mobian tactics. Her soldiers' enthusiasm gradually gave way to simple determination, not to win the stupid war but to last it out without being killed or, more likely, captured.

And, sure enough, they did, right up to the signing of the armistice. Already having been promoted repeatedly during the course of the war, she had finally been made a general in its aftermath, when many of the formerly high-ranking officers had been imprisoned as war criminals.

Pacing around her small office on the Starlight City military reservation, she was becoming more and more irritated with her immediate situation. The officer formerly in charge of the base had been removed for undisclosed reasons several months ago, and after she accepted the command she had become absolutely disgusted with the base. After the war they were horribly understaffed, and many of those who were with them were either recruits or diehard veterans who had some sort of vendetta with the Mobians.

As if that weren't enough, there was the whole matter with that Doctor Robotnik conducting secret experiments on her base. She'd read the reports, of course... something about wiring nonsentient animals into machinery to make it more efficient. And, recently, assisting in the development of certain components in the WaveStar satellite for a private corporation. But, she thought, I wouldn't be surprised if those reports were filtered. Some of his work is so high-security that even I'm not privy to it. Not to mention that he is the most repulsive human being that I have ever had the displeasure of meeting.

She should never have signed on for that second tour of duty, she thought; once she'd fulfilled her obligations she would depart. She didn't care where she went, as long as it involved being far away from corrupt politicians, inept bureaucrats, and neurotic soldiers.

And now, interrupting her work, not to mention her train of thought, was a twenty-year-old male in nondescript clothing and a Mobian hedeghog in almost no clothing. A very important hedgehog, at that, which explained how they had managed to get to talk to her instead of spending the day tied up in red tape.

Sitting back down in her leather chair, she listened to the other human speak.

***

The whole office seemed designed to intimidate visitors, Jerome thought. Well, perhaps not, but it certainly had that effect, whether intended or not. Minimal electronics - the computer was discreetly set behind a row of books on the desk. Expensive hardwood paneling was accented by equally expensive-looking furniture.

So expensive, in fact, that he got the impression that if he were to so much as leave a fingerprint he would be executed for treason, heresy, and jaywalking all at the same time. Mahogany bookcases lined with nigh-ancient volumes that were likely as valuable as they were old; two globes, one of Earth and one of Mobius, on either side of the door; yet more valuable wood built into a desk; and a brown leather chair behind it, in front of a huge window that looked out onto the rest of the base.

But of greater immediate concern was the woman behind the desk. Dressed in a formal, bluish military uniform, with more decorations on it than the average household displayed come Christmastime. Her overall expression revealed little, but her eyes were stern and impatient.

Looking down at the nameplate on the desk, he addressed her, his voice questioning but hardly timid. "General... Hague?" Evidently, he thought, I horribly mispronounced her name; she corrected him in a voice that matched her eyes. "Silent 'e'. Silent 'u'. 'Ay'-sound. One syllable."

Right... he continued, stepping aside so as to permit her a better view of his Mobian companion. "This is Sir Charles Hedgehog, formerly in command of the Second Division of His Majesty King Acorn's Royal Guard, currently assigned to ambassadorial duty in the human colonies. His nephew seems to be lost somewhere on your base. I believe that he would like to have a word with you."

***

The sign above the gates wasn't at all flashy or loud. In simple, albeit large letters, it proclaimed "Springyard"; and, below that, "A public service financed by the Official Embassy of the Cocytan Federation."

It sounded familiar somehow. Wait a minute, Sonic thought, wasn't that where I was supposed to be going tomorrow? They probably won't want me to visit early and see everything before them. Still... he looked around. The park, walled in by a series of hedges and bushes, was set up in the middle of a fairly quiet suburban area, with only a few scattered homes nearby. Surely no one would mind if he looked inside to find a pay phone.

He stepped through the gates and looked around. The area immediately within consisted of a concrete walkway, with various buildings set a few yards off from it. After a couple of seconds, he located the brownish, octagonal structure marked "Visitor's Center", and walked inside.

Not normally one to stare at exhibits, he ignored the display racks along the walls in his search for a telephone. Finally locating one, he almost ran to it...

...and was most disappointed half a minute later, after he realized that he had no money; and, worse yet, he wasn't nearly tall enough to reach the controls.

A youthful, feminine voice, with a hint of amusement in its tone. "May I help you?"

And Sonic had thought that the center was unoccupied! Somewhat startled, he turned around to see a human sitting behind a nearby counter. Not five feet off, in fact; how could he have possibly missed her? Maybe because the counter was a little taller than he was.

"Um..." He wasn't sure what to say, his last encounter with a human being distinctly unpleasant. "Do you have a phone I could use?" Having watched him struggle with the pay phone, she simply nodded and handed him the telephone behind the counter.

He picked up the handset and was about to dial when another thought came to him. "Can I see a phone book?" He didn't even know Jerome's number. How embarrassing! But she complied, maintaining the same amused expression as she watched him sit down on the floor and flip through the huge directory for a good five minutes or so before finding whatever number it was that he wanted.

Eventually the hedgehog dialed a number, and after several seconds he asked another question, a confused look on his face. "It just told me to leave a message at the sound of the tone, and then beeped at me."

Now the human - Victoria Brown, according to her name tag - was trying to keep from laughing. "The person you called wasn't there, so you got their answering machine. Say something, and when they return they'll get your message."

He quickly said something about being at Springyard and asking to be taken back to the house, and then hung up. Handing the phone back, he noticed the human holding a small video camera in one hand as she placed the telephone back in its place with the other.

"You're here for the peace conference, aren't you?"

Sonic answered, gazing confusedly into the camera. "Uh... yeah... my uncle's attending it."

"Cool. Mind if I ask you a couple of questions?"

"Why?"

She giggled. "My boyfriend says that it's impossible to carry on an intelligent conversation with a Mobian." Rotating the camera around to face herself, she gave it a triumphant look. "Take that, Brian!"

She turned the camera back to the bewildered hedgehog. "Anyway. My name's Victoria - definitely not 'Vicky'. What's yours?"

"Sonic."

"You don't say. And what's your real name?"

"Um..."

"Never mind. Ever been to Springyard before?"

He shook his head. "Nope."

"Come on! I'll show you around."

Sonic pointed at the desk. "Aren't you supposed to be working there or something?"

Victoria continued filming the Mobian as she got up and walked around the desk. "Not really. It's my lunch break, after all. Besides, the place is pretty much deserted; everyone plans on coming on Arrival Day, so normally no one shows up the day before."

At the mention of 'lunch' Sonic remembered the meal he'd never had that morning. "Do you know where I can get something to eat, too?"

She nodded, walking for the door and beckoning him to come. "Sure. There's a stand right outside."

Sonic followed her out. Humans are really, really weird, he thought. First they try to beat me up, now they're making home movies about me. Oh well... if she pulls anything stupid I can just run away. Besides, I'm hungry and I can't afford to buy anything to eat.

***

Tachyon, on the other hand, always carried a small amount of money, but rarely had the opportunity or inclination to spend it. At the time lunch was far from his mind; flying high above Starlight City, he continued to look for a certain blue hedgehog.

And wasn't having much luck, either. There was heavy traffic in the downtown area that he flew over, cars driving mostly to and from the city's various eating establishments. Quite a few pedestrians, too, he noticed. How was he supposed to find Sonic in this? And what could he possibly do to 'Priority Hedgehog' in the middle of a human population center, for that matter...

He looked about himself, trying to find a convenient place to land and settling on a large road sign above the city's Speed Highway. Raised above all but the highest buildings, it and the accompanying network of far-above-ground parking garages permitted those humans who owned hovercraft to drive them at high speeds without presenting a danger to the more conventional traffic below.

Said hovercraft swept by under him, creating fairly strong air currents. He hardly minded - it wasn't quite as bad as when he flew at his characteristically high velocities. The falcon almost found it calming, though he took particular care to ensure that he had a firm grip on the horizontal, metal pole on which the sign was mounted; with one of his primary back claws gone, it was more difficult than usual to remain perched.

Resting his tired wings somewhat, he pondered the situation. If only he could have the area scanned... but, no, that wouldn't work. The complex's internal sensors did not extend this far, and if he could just imagine the reactions he would get if he called a bunch of robots out to assist in the search.

But what else could he possibly do? The obvious answer came to him, and he almost slapped himself for his own stupidity. Of course, he thought. This is a human city - you can buy just about anything here! All I have to do is find someplace that sells portable scanners; maybe one of those huge shopping centers of theirs.

He took off, and after a moment of surveying the signs below him, he descended to the sidewalk outside a building marked "Starlight Mall".

***

Sonic sat next to his strange human companion on a plastic bench near the concessions stand. In between bites of a chili dog that had been purchased for him, he asked, "What's so special about this place, anyway?" He thought he remembered Jerome's description, but wasn't quite sure.

She eagerly answered, having switched the video camera off while the Mobian ate. "The Cocytans paid for this place to be set up as a sort of museum so people can find out more about them. Stuff like that."

A museum? That didn't sound too interesting to the hyperactive hedgehog. She seemed to sense his reaction, and continued. "There are a bunch of displays set up about, like, Cocytan culture and technology; and there are all sorts of ramps and springs and stuff set up in the low-gravity area. Hence the name." She smiled.

He swallowed another mouthful before he responded. "Low-gravity area?"

She nodded, pleased that she had caught his attention. "Like I said, Cocytan culture AND technology. They're really advanced. There's, like, this big generator underground that lowers the gravity for about half of the park. Kids like coming here with skateboards and stuff."

"Cool!"

"Uh-huh. How 'bout I show you around? Brian'll really have a fit when he sees video footage of a Mobian playing on the equipment." Another smile.

Sonic wasn't quite sure if that was a good thing or not, but readily consented anyway, finishing the chili dog off and forgetting all about the next day's planned trip.

***

Tachyon strode through the Starlight Mall, the tapping of his claws on the hard floor all but lost in the noise of the crowd. Not to mention the recorded music playing over the speakers. Why do humans have to have musical accompaniment for their shopping, he wondered?

The falcon was a bit uneasy around the humans; and from the looks of things, the feeling was mutual. The crowd parted everywhere he went, and glances of everything from curiosity to suspicion were cast in his direction, while others simply made a point of ignoring him. Back on the base - or certain parts of it, anyway - he was a fairly common sight, but he doubted that many of these people had ever seen a Mobian of any sort except on television.

At least it wasn't quite as awkward as that time last month. He had decided to stop at a human restaurant after one of his routine exercise flights, but they wouldn't even let him in. Of course, he thought, it was probably because they _didn't_ think that he was a Mobian. Some bird-Mobians were mostly humanoid, but others - such as Tachyon - were, in essence, huge birds with dextrous wingtips. And that store's employees likely weren't too thrilled when a giant falcon dropped from the sky, wrapped its claws around the door handle and pulled... he chuckled at the thought. Ever since that day he had worn his belt everywhere he went, so that he wouldn't be mistaken for a nonsentient lifeform.

Rounding a corner, still searching for a directory, his gaze rested on the mall's large cafeteria area, featuring a video arcade and at least a dozen assorted fast-food establishments. Speaking of restaurants...

No, he told himself. Shadow will not be pleased if you waste time here.

Of course, he rationalized, Shadow likely wouldn't be too happy if his hunger somehow interfered with catching "Priority Hedgehog". And so, after waiting in line for several minutes he ordered a sandwich from a human clerk who did not look particularly thrilled to see him. He noted, with some amusement, that she even left the counter to wash her hands after putting the money he had given her into the cash register.

Setting his tray on a table and then hopping onto an adjacent chair, he unfolded the paper wrapping to see what was probably the sorriest-looking sandwich he had ever seen. Oh well, he thought, what should I expect...

Not only did it look unappetizing, it was also quite messy. Placing his wings at his sides, he used his beak to set the bread and condiments aside, and then tore at the meat, drawing even more strange looks than before.

And stopping, at one point, to critically examine what was left to make sure that he was, in fact, consuming actual organic nutrients as opposed to cardboard. Resolving never to eat at a human establishment again, he put his wings back down at his sides and continued forcing the distasteful 'food' into his beak out of hunger. A human family at an adjacent table quickly packed up and departed after their young child tried to imitate him.

"Tachyon? Report."

Just finishing his 'meal', the falcon raised the communicator to his beak, partially covering its speaker with his other hand. "Please speak with diminished volume, sir, I am in the human city..."

"I will speak with whatever volume I darned well please," Shadow said in a cold voice, no longer patient enough to listen to his aide's suggestions. Fortunately, his voice was also quiet. "Now tell me what is going on, and especially, where Priority-accursed-Hedgehog is."

Several more dirty looks were thrown in Tachyon's direction; someone nearby muttered something about cellphones. His confidence was gradually being replaced with awkwardness. "I'm afraid I don't yet know, sir, though he ran off towards this city," he whispered, beak almost touching the communicator. "I stopped in a human shopping center to purchase a scanner so I can continue looking."

"You don't know." He sounded almost incredulous.

"I'm afraid so, sir."

Shadow's voice started out low and gradually increased in both pitch and intensity. "I have commanded you to capture, intimidate, or assassinate soldiers, scientists, and political leaders at least a dozen times. You have never disobeyed, never failed. And you are telling me that you cannot even catch a juvenile hedgehog inside the very city that you have lived and worked in for multiple decades??!!"

Tachyon winced, hand clamped over the speaker, hoping that his master's more incriminating revelations were not heard by those nearby. Gulping audibly, he responded. "I'm afraid so, sir."

He placed his hand back over the wristband, in anticipation of what violent noises might come from it. But it was silent; Shadow said not a word, made not a sound.

Which was even worse. The last time he had been like this, Tachyon had nearly been killed by his reprisal afterwards.

Driven by a new sense of urgency, the falcon hurriedly wiped his beak off on a napkin and then hopped down off of his chair, leaving the mess for the humans to clean up. Besides, he thought, if it weren't for them Shadow and I wouldn't be in this whole situation to begin with.

***

Face in his hands, claws digging into his skin, body shaking all over, a corner of Shadow's brain tried to quantify his mood. Anger? Fury? Rage? No... those words were so completely inadequate. Years of humiliation, months of planning, and now an idiot child and his own inept bodyguard were going to render it all futile.

Why? It had all been going so well this morning; what went wrong? What kind of cruel trick were the Laws of Probability trying to play on him? Hadn't he suffered enough? Mobius was rightfully his!

He finally removed his hands from his face and folded his arms, staring into the hologram that comprised his display. What was he supposed to do now?

An answer came from the incoherent ranting of Doctor Robotnik, broadcasted over his computer's speakers and dulled to a more acceptably quiet level by a safeguard he had written into the system. Trying to make out individual words, he was fairly sure that he was supposed to meet and speak with the human again; the rest of the phrases he could distinguish didn't bear repeating.

Once again he pressed both hands against each other, walking out into the hallway and squinting at the light. He didn't try quite as hard to conceal his mood around the complex's other employees, and they actively stepped out of the way as he approached.

Shadow finally reached the doctor's location: the same hangar as before. And, sure enough, his hovercraft was being modified with some new and equally obscure weapon system. Robotnik himself appeared to have been pacing, but stopped to address the feline. "Is that idiot bird of yours still tracking Sonic?" He pronounced the name with vicious hatred.

"Oh, yes, that idiot bird of mine is still tracking Sonic." And he meant every word that he said.

"And where is the hedgehog now?"

"Somewhere in the city; I'm afraid that Tachyon can't be more specific."

The human's eyes almost seemed to glow menacingly. "Then why are the troops from the military base searching my complex for 'Ambassador Hedgehog's Nephew'?"

Shadow's calm expression changed slightly to reveal surprise. "I have no idea whatsoever." 'Sonic' was related to an ambassador? Well, it made sense. There normally weren't that many Mobians in the colonies, but with this peace conference and all...

Ivo issued an order to the dark, black feline next to him as he turned away and went towards his hovercraft, the repairs and modifications almost completed. "I am going to locate and destroy Priority Hedgehog. You will ensure that the soldiers leave quickly, without 'certain questions' being asked. No violence; just hurry them up and get them out of here. Do you understand?"

"Yes."

Shadow watched as Robotnik climbed into his hovercraft and launched it out of the hangar. What was the crazy human doing?! Going right into the middle of a city and trying to kill that 'Sonic'... he would put their entire operation in jeopardy!

He should have seen this coming, he thought. When someone angered Robotnik he did not stop until the unfortunate entity was completely erased. And for some reason, this hedgehog was proving inordinately difficult to kill.

He left to do as the human directed, stopping first to have a brief word with his computer about finding a way into the complex's highest-security files and command structures. If Robotnik was, in fact, to end up getting himself apprehended, then Shadow had to have a way to keep his plan going, at least until late that evening.

***

Several hours later the evening sun was low in the sky, almost behind the distant mountains.

But there was still more than enough light to illuminate the area; a bowl-shaped indentation in the ground, perhaps forty feet across, with a small cluster of trampoline-like platforms in the very center. And a certain blue, Mobian hedgehog zipping across it, his path curving upward as he reached the edges of the indentation and shot into the air.

Victoria watched as he curled, in midair, into a spherical form and then rolled back down and across the inside surface of the 'bowl', shooting back into the air on the other side and landing on the central trampolines. He had been playing that way for the entire afternoon, only stopping every now and then to get a drink or look at the displays when he got tired. Having, like most of the planet's population, never before seen a lifeform that could naturally break the sound barrier, she had been positively amazed and watched almost the entire time, video camera running constantly. Fortunately, the device's advanced memory card wasn't even half full yet.

"Watch this!" Sonic called to her as he bounced on the trampolines, doing several backflips in the reduced gravity. He loved showing off, and his audience was captivated. Not only will I be able to show Brian, she thought, but my journalism professor will forgive me for all those essays I turned in late when he sees _this_ on the six-o'clock news tomorrow. She'd thought she had seen speed and co-ordination when the Mobius Sports Network had filmed a skateboarding event in Springyard, but this child was putting them to shame!

For his part, Sonic was enjoying himself immensely. As his energy field activated certain parts of his brain sped up correspondingly, and he was able to process the complex stunts he performed as easily as other children could use traditional playground equipment. He could certainly run whenever he liked back in Mobotropolis, even go to a rec center or two, but he had never seen such a glorious place as this! And the lower gravity only further enhanced both his capabilities and his enjoyment.

And, when he stopped to rest - as he decided to do at that time - there were still all sorts of things to keep his active mind occupied. There were certainly ample historical displays and rare cultural artifacts set up on pedestals, but there were also entire rooms filled with Cocytan devices for hands-on examination. Likely their advanced race's equivalent of cheap toys, but they had him enthralled. Rods that could draw glowing lines onto thin air, which faded within half a minute. Headsets that displayed a fully three-dimensional view of fantastically picturesque, alien landscapes. Small crystals that changed shape in his hands.

At one point he became absorbed in a video display of some sort, depicting the story of the first human contact with Cocytans; of the astronauts sent in a "Space Shuttle" to divert the course of a meteor on a collision course with their homeworld. He thought that it was just a movie, at first, but quickly discovered that the display was interactive and started to drive the story further with his own input.

Yes, Sonic was so caught up in his play that he had completely forgotten about Jerome and his uncle for the time being. He had even forgotten his discomfort at being in the human city. He also didn't notice the odd little hovercraft floating perhaps fifty feet above the building he was in, its pilot intently scanning the area.

***

Tachyon stopped on the roof of a suburban house, checking the handheld scanner he'd purchased. The teleporter's signal was very strong now, not too far away. He looked up; there was some sort of park across the street. Springyard, he remembered.

And, he thought, as if the scanner wasn't enough of a clue it looks like the unpleasant egglike one has found Sonic as well, given that his hovercraft is descending in the park's vicinity. Getting ready to attack, too, most likely.

It took me long enough just to locate the hedgehog. I'm not going to let Robotnik find the teleporter, let alone destroy it along with Sonic... He quickly tossed the scanner aside and launched himself off of the building, wings propelling his avian form in the direction of the park.

***

Still sitting at the display after a half hour or so, Sonic was just as interested as he'd been when he had started it up. The 'asteroid' had turned out to be a beautiful, crystalline starship of some sort, and had transported the astronauts to another planet; Cocytus, he figured.

But where were the aliens? The planet was deserted, and the hedgehog confused.

The characters in the display were conversing, which masked the hum of the hovercraft's engine. But as it floated downward, facing the building, he saw it through a window. And then a small, red light turned on above a rather unpleasant-looking turret of some sort...

In a fraction of a second he leaped from his chair, grabbed the nearby teleporter, and raced out of the building as a very large, anti-tank missile was thrust into the wall immediately behind his former position. Barely escaping the fireball, he was thrown several dozen feet by the explosion's shock wave, landing on the padded surface of the low-gravity area nearby.

***

Robotnik jettisoned the empty, now useless missile launcher, cursing Sonic and everything about him. How could he have possibly escaped that!? How could his reflexes be that well developed?

***

Sonic picked himself up off of the padded tiles that comprised the surface of the low-gravity zone. In shock, he stared at the flaming wreckage that had housed those fascinating artifacts and displays, all of which were now destroyed or buried in rubble.

And what about the other human? The female? He looked around; oh, good, she was still alive. He could see her through the office's windows as she hung up a telephone receiver and ran outside, camcorder in hand.

His fear and shock turned to anger. What was that man's name? Robotnik? How dare he! What right did he have to destroy those alien artifacts... to try to kill him?

I've run long enough, the hedgehog thought. This time, I'm going to take that... Egg-man... down.

***

Perching on top of the building that housed the offices and visitor's center, Tachyon watched the conflict with interest. The hovercraft was slower than it had been before; probably extra armor, he thought. It would attempt to descend on top of Sonic, a large spike extended from its lower surface, but invariably missed and ended up with a large 'floor' tile attached instead. And every time it descended the hedgehog would leap at it, curling into a spiked sphere in midair, but his attacks seemed to have much less effect than before.

The falcon considered joining in, but decided against it. Robotnik's opinion of Shadow and himself likely wouldn't improve at the interference, and Sonic was an even more formidable adversary. He winced, imagining the results of a collision with the spiny, electromagnetically charged hedgehog.

Sonic was so formidable, in fact, that it genuinely seemed as if the hovercraft's armor was being worn down, albeit gradually. Tachyon knew he had to do something about the situation. Perhaps distract Sonic? How?

He looked around, searching for some way to do so, when he caught sight of a human female standing off to the side. She seemed to be filming the spectacle on a handheld video camera.

The moron. Why wasn't she calling for help, telephoning the human law enforcement center? Or had she already? That would further diminish what time was left before Sonic's victory.

Perhaps, he thought, she might make a good distraction. Leaping from the building, he landed on the human and dug his claws deeply into her shoulders.

***

Sonic whirled around to see the bird that had been pursuing him earlier attached to Victoria's back, his claws raking at her shoulders repeatedly as she screamed and ran about, arms batting at him.

As the hedgehog was thrown, momentarily, into a confused and indecisive state, Robotnik positioned his hovercraft directly overhead and dropped the section of tiling that had been attached to the vehicle's spike.

It turned end over end as it fell, padded side impacting the top of Sonic's head and knocking him flat on the ground as the teleporter fell out of his hands.

***

Seeing his chance, Tachyon took flight, aiming directly for the device. His claws closed around it, and he ascended...

Only to smack into the hovercraft, teleporter leaving his own grasp as he dropped to the ground.

***

Sonic wasn't quite sure what had happened, but quickly took action nevertheless. He picked himself up, jumping at Robotnik's hovercraft once again and grabbing the teleporter as he landed, eyes only briefly darting over Tachyon's inert form. He experienced momentary revulsion as he realized that the device was quite messy, after having been handled by the same bird that had... he didn't even want to think about it. The human had ceased yelling, and was rushing back into the building, presumably to bandage herself. Or perhaps even to call the hospital, depending on how badly she had been wounded.

He glared at the unconscious falcon, eyes firmly averted from his lower claws, and then returned his gaze to the hovercraft. Sonic shouted an insult of some sort - he wouldn't remember what - but Robotnik did not resume his attack. The vehicle instead rose in altitude and sped away.

What should he do now? He couldn't just let him get away like that, could he?

Scenes raced through his mind; of the murderous look in Robotnik's eyes as he tried to hit Sonic with a wrecking ball. Of the imprisoned Flickies. Of the incinerated museum. Voices, of Shadow proclaiming the imminent death of humanity, and of that Eggman introducing himself as the future ruler of Mobius.

He wasn't quite sure what was going on, but he doubted that anyone else knew of it. For a moment he wished that he could tell his uncle, that he could get help... but that would be letting Robotnik escape!

Still somewhat shaky after being hit with the large tile, he raced after the surprisingly fast hovercraft. He knew that he was putting himself in immense danger, but suppressed his fear, trying to concentrate on running. What were they planning to do? How much time was left?

Hopefully, enough for a supersonic hedgehog to stop them.


	4. Labyrinth Zone

Chapter 4

Labyrinth Zone

---------------

The vehicle's speed barely topped 120 mph, but it continued to frustrate Sonic's attempts at pursuit simply by remaining several dozen feet above the ground. The terrain was somewhat hilly, and thin trees dotted it in places; he decided that he was probably back in the Green Hill zone.

Running almost directly underneath Robotnik's hovercraft, the hedgehog tried to figure out how to attack his nemesis, eyes darting between target and ground level as he alternately monitored the vehicle and his own path. Could he climb one of the trees? No, most of them were too flimsy to climb, and all were far too short. This was so frustrating! Wait... was it just him, or was that hovercraft slowing down?

Eyes focusing on the vehicle for a second too long, he barely avoided running off of a cliff. As it was, he skidded to a halt right next to the dropoff, sharp-looking rocks and turbulent water far below.

About a hundred feet below, to be more precise, with a road of some sort running along a ledge and into a tunnel about half that distance down the cliff face. A tunnel which Robotnik carefully brought his hovercraft around to enter, much to Sonic's dismay.

Still trying to catch his breath after the sudden surge of adrenalin that had resulted from his nearly being skewered, drowned, or both, Sonic surveyed the area. Could he climb down? It didn't take more than a second look to tell him otherwise. Alright then, how about taking that road? He stared off into the distance. The road in question followed the cliff face as far as the eye could see; he would have to sidetrack for quite some time before he could reach it without leaping forty or fifty feet down.

After resting for a moment or two, he sped off along the top of the cliff, this time keeping a safe distance between himself and the dropoff.

***

Regaining consciousness, Tachyon picked himself up off of the soft, padded surface of the low-gravity area. It took him a few seconds to realize where he was, what was going on - or had been going on.

The first thing that came to mind was the teleporter. Where was it now? He looked around. The tiles had been ripped up during the battle, and several were also quite messy after his own little conflict; he shivered, trying to put it out of his mind and keep from staring at his stained claws.

But even after picking up several loose pieces of debris and tossing them aside, he was unable to find the teleporter. Likely, he thought, 'Sonic' had run off with it. Where had he gone? The hovercraft was not present either. Had Robotnik captured him? The thought of that human finding the teleporter and the accompanying emeralds troubled him.

He was about to call Shadow and ask, but an unfamiliar noise interrupted his thoughts. Some sort of electronic wailing, of varying pitch and growing intensity. Wait - that was the siren typically employed by human emergency and law enforcement vehicles. It would not do at all for them to find him... He took flight, headed out of the city altogether.

***

Jerome and Sir Charles were still in Alexandria's office, waiting for any sort of report on Sonic's location. Preferably, that he had been found and was alive and well.

Both were anxious and worried. Jerome managed to maintain a neutral expression, seeming to casually browse websites on his handheld computer - it helped that he had no actual familial tie with the young hedgehog, and had only known him for a few years. Not so with his companion, who paced back and forth nervously.

Not only was Sir Charles Hedgehog nervous, he was also in agony at his own inability to do anything more than wait. Had this occurred back in Mobotropolis, he likely would have been personally leading a search party, not anxiously wringing his hands while younger humans scoured the complex for a Mobian they didn't even know.

The two had good reason to worry, too. They had seen the Flickies, had heard their stories. What was going on in that complex? Jerome had tried to tell the other human, but she had abruptly dismissed his concerns.

In truth, Alexandria thought, she wouldn't be at all surprised if they were correct, but she didn't have the time to investigate their reports. Oh, she would do so, but that would come later, after they'd found the ambassador's nephew. Not to mention Doctor Robotnik himself, who was mysteriously absent from the base. She'd thought that she had heard of the 'Flickies' once or twice before, at any rate, and-

A report came in on her desktop computer, indicated by a tone accompanied by the scrolling text of the message itself. The two others in the room quickly crowded around her desk, but she held a hand up to keep the metaphorical vultures at bay and summarized the report herself.

"There's been a bombing downtown, at Springyard." Ballistics experts would later determine that the explosion was actually caused by a very large missile, but specifics notwithstanding Sir Charles' heart rate increased dramatically at this statement and he grabbed the desk to steady himself as she continued reading.

"Some sort of conflict, involving your nephew..." she peered more closely at the screen, "and a small hovercraft of some sort." She frowned. "Robotnik was piloting it."

"Is Sonic alright?" The hedgehog had to make a conscious effort to keep his voice from becoming hysterical.

"While we're at it," Jerome queried, "who exactly is this Robotnik fellow?" And, he thought to himself, what kind of ridiculous name is that...

She continued scanning the display. "The hovercraft left, headed in the direction of the Green Hill Wilderness Zone. Your nephew was intact at last report, and in pursuit, for that matter. And Doctor Robotnik is a scientist who used to conduct classified, high-security experiments on base."

Sir Charles sighed in relief, and Jerome raised his eyebrows. "How long ago?"

The general typed rapidly on her keyboard as she calmly said, "A few seconds ago. From the looks of things, he's a madman, and I am fully within my authority to shut him down. His complex is heavily guarded; I'm activating the airborne and armored divisions, but if we move quickly enough we should be able to secure his command center long before he thinks to tell the defenses to fire on us." Sirens outside her window proclaimed the base's alert status, to the dismay of those soldiers who were off-duty, and she picked up an intercom handset. "Which veterinarian did you bring those birds to?"

Her guests were both surprised at the sudden activity, having expected the same monumental inefficiency they had seen or heard of in other branches of human government. Jerome contained his pleasure and told her where the Flickies were.

She quickly spoke into the intercom, ordering whomever was listening to send a detachment to retrieve the birds or guard them if the one was too injured to be moved. "Evidence," she offered in simple explanation.

***

Once again, Shadow stalked through the complex's hallways, this time headed for the command center. Alarms sounded; sure enough, Robotnik had done something stupid, and now the human soldiers were trying to seize control.

Such as the one standing in said command center, automatic weapon ready. Shadow gave him a critical look. Only one soldier? Either they didn't know the significance of this room, with all the monitors lining the walls and expensive electronics on the floor, or they were even more horribly understaffed than he'd thought. Or both.

The guard came to attention as he entered, quickly saluting. "Sir! The base is being evacuated, sir! Please come with me to the exit, sir!" Probably a new recruit, judging from the distinct lack of rank stripes on his arm, not to mention his stiff demeanor; a veteran of the Great War likely would not have been quite so formal.

Shadow's advanced - very advanced - computer had already broken into the systems, but he needed to be in the control room to access most of the complex's functions effectively. This human would have to go.

"_Nial talgar'ess innhor larad venh._"

The human gave Shadow a quizzical look as the cat directed the above statement to the computers, stepping over to them and pressing various buttons. He put a hand on the Mobian's shoulder, trying to direct him away. "I'll have to ask you to step away from the controls, sir..." He didn't think that the other understood him, but tried to communicate nevertheless.

Shadow slowly turned around, pulling the hand away and speaking in a low, hateful tone. "Kindly remove your bacteria-ridden manipulative appendage, vile alien."

He stared into the human's eyes. A firey, commanding stare, containing so much hatred, so much malice that the soldier was forced to look away, blinking several times. And ended up being distracted long enough for the wasplike security drone that Shadow had summoned to discharge several plasma bolts into his back.

Shadow smiled condescendingly at the limp form, smoke issuing from charred armor. It was certainly convenient to have a computer that understood obscure Mobian dialects. "You people had your fun destroying my base, didn't you? But you didn't finish the job." He tapped a few keys, summoning a maintenance robot to remove the body. "I will end this myself."

He addressed the computer again, this time in English. "Security drones: Neutralize all humans in the complex." He thought for a moment, and then said, "Except for Doctor Robotnik." It wouldn't do to turn on him just yet; if things didn't work out he would need all the allies that he could get.

And things definitely wouldn't work out if Tachyon didn't manage to get those emeralds. They would have to move very quickly now. Wait... what was this on the monitor?

He pressed a key on his wristband, remarkably similar to his aide's except for its completely black design. "Tachyon! Have you located the hedgehog?"

There was a short delay, and then the falcon's voice came from the speaker. "Negative, sir."

Shadow ignored Tachyon's nervous tone and continued. "He is just outside the entrance to the underwater complex in sector twenty-seven. Try looking in that area."

"Yes, sir. Is Robotnik in his vicinity?"

He checked the monitors... sure enough. "Yes."

"Good. I think Sonic has been pursuing him for some reason. I will investigate."

"You'll do more than that, Tachyon. Just don't dawdle too much. Understood?"

Several miles away his aide nodded, unseen. "Yes, sir."

***

Sonic peeked out from behind a large rock, peering over it at the security checkpoint nearby at which two insectoid robots barred passage on the road he had been following. He could attack, but he was outnumbered; one of them might shoot him. Likely he should just run through, he thought.

And he would have to do it now. The buzzing noise generated by their hover modules grew in intensity. They were coming for him! Leaping from his hiding spot, he looked back once he was several hundred feet away a half-second or so later. There they were, flying away from him. Why weren't they pursuing?

He didn't spend too much time pondering this, instead taking off down the road at high speed. Not too high, though... there was no guardrail on the side facing the water, and he couldn't swim. Not that he would be in any condition to do so after falling that distance.

He soon came to the unmarked entrance to the tunnel. It was dark inside; for that matter, he couldn't see anything beyond the entrance, the sun not shining in the proper direction so as to illuminate its interior. Like so many other children he was quite afraid of the dark, and this time with good reason. What if Robotnik had decided to ambush him or something? Or maybe those flying robots of his.

Gulping audibly and trying to set his fear aside, he held up the teleporter's luminescent screen and proceeded into the tunnel. He could not see more than a few feet in front of himself, and the road disappeared only a short way through, to be replaced by wet, smooth stone. He was walking at an incline, he realized, gradually descending. Was this a secret base or something? No, he told himself, it would have more guards if it were.

Unless, of course, the guards were further down. Maybe they did that so nobody on the surface would see intruders getting shot. Or maybe the place was so deadly - radiation or biological contamination, or something - that it didn't need a security system. Or maybe...

He shivered in the damp coldness. Better not to think about that, even though it was so hard not to.

Sonic continued walking for what seemed like hours to his hyperactive mind, every fear that he'd ever experienced haunting him in the darkness, along with several entirely new ones. He looked back - the entrance was no longer visible. But was that a light of some sort, up ahead?

He increased his pace somewhat, wanting to be back in the light, wanting to be anywhere but that cave-

ZN-18 Excavation Drones (no doubt given a more creative nickname by their egglike architect) were essentially smallish, quasi-humanoid robots propelled by treads and featuring a series of sharp, industrial grade diamond covered drills. Used extensively in excavating the ancient, underground complex, they were subsequently buried several inches under the surface of the caverns as a security measure, springing out of the ground when an intruder was detected.

An intruder, such as Sonic.

The hedgehog had been startled like this several times before. Likely everyone has. Walking through the dark - the locale familiar or otherwise - and then coming across something that looked foreign, hostile. The heart would race for a split second, right before the realization that the object was just a coat rack, or an antique grandfather clock, or what-have-you. Nervous laughter; how silly of me, one might think, I've seen that a thousand times with the lights turned on.

But as the glow from the teleporter's screen reflected off of the incredibly sharp, rotating drills, the only realization that came to Sonic's mind was that he had managed to stumble across something that genuinely meant to kill him. The initial rush of adrenalin did not go away, but intensified, threatening to freeze his limbs in place. He nevertheless managed to jump backwards, the robot advancing on him.

Sonic had two options now: fight or flight. Should he continue on, facing his fears and a thousand tons of assorted war machinery, knowing that he was probably the only one who knew anything about the conspiracy of the man in the hovercraft and the voice on the communicator? Or should he run away while he still had the chance? Flee the human colonies, before whatever it was happened? He was being shown the cold reality of the choice he'd made in Springyard, and given an opportunity to reconsider.

He wished that he didn't have to make the decision, that someone else had found out about what was going on. But there was no way out now. Whatever was going to happen to the colonies would occur that night, perhaps even in the next couple of hours. The humans would never listen to a ten-year-old Mobian, and his efforts at finding his uncle had only met with failure. If only he hadn't stayed at Springyard for so long!

All these thoughts ran through his mind, its quickness heightened by the same cells that increased his physical speed, as the machine advanced on him. The hedgehog still being paralyzed with uncertainty, his conscience tried to step up the pace of decision-making.

The choice is between placing your own life at risk, and letting a million people almost certainly die.

But they're humans... the argument sounded absolutely lame, and it was.

You're going to let them get killed for the mistakes of a few politicians and soldiers who have already been punished for their crimes?

The machine continued to roll towards him on long-buried treads, its rate of progression seemingly slowed to a crawl as he pondered the situation. He was sure that he could count individual grooves on those spinning drills.

What about that one with the video camera, back at Springyard. Would you let her die?

Of course not.

How many other innocent humans are there?

Quickly making up his mind, Sonic ran towards the robot, rolling into a ball at the last second and plowing right through it, electronic debris scattering across the cavern as he did so. Picking himself up, he didn't stop to look back but ran again, this time for the literal light at the end of the tunnel.

***

Tachyon walked down the same tunnel several minutes later, the incessant tapping of his claws resounding throughout the rounded cavern. His handheld light reflected off of the damp, brownish stone, littered here and there with small pebbles. And much shinier particles... what was all this?

A few feet more and he came across much larger fragments of debris; an intact drill here, half of a tread there. He stopped, surveying the area. Had the hedgehog done this? It looked as if the machine, whatever it was, had been hit by a truck!

I will have to be more careful, the falcon mused.

About to proceed, he stopped in midstride. A faint voice called out from somewhere in the wreckage. "Hello?"

Tachyon shone his light around the area, trying to find the source of the noise. "Where are you?"

"Over here." There was a tiny banging noise, as if he - it sounded like a male's voice - was hitting some piece of metal to help in the search. He continued speaking during the process. "Someone locked me in that robot, but then this blue hedgehog came by and saved me, but I'm afraid of the dark, and I'm hoping that he'll come back. Are you him?" Faint sniffling; he had obviously been crying. Likely a child, Tachyon surmised, and definitely one of those Flickies. Very talkative.

His light finally rested on the diminutive avian's form, light bluish feathers still somewhat matted after their robotic imprisonment. It squinted at the light for several seconds before its eyes adjusted and it saw the form beyond. A look of instant recognition and abject terror swept across its face, which was promptly buried in its wings as the crying resumed. "Not you - anyone but you! Please don't put me in another robot, I just want to go home!"

The falcon moaned at this; it must be one of the birds that he personally captured, he realized. Tachyon hated seeing the results of his work, necessary as it might be to ensure Shadow's triumph.

"I don't have time for this..." Grabbing the Flicky, he thrust it close to his face and assumed the most menacing tone that he could bring to bear on a grovelling child. "The hedgehog went that way," he pointed in the direction of the faint light, "correct?"

It nodded, eyes wide with fear and almost as wet as the cavern floor.

"Did he say anything to you?"

It shook its head.

"What all did he do, then?"

It responded, choking on its tears several times. "I jumped out - the robot did, I mean - and he jumped back, and I went closer, and he sort of ran right through me, I mean the robot, and then I was free, and you came right afterwards..."

"How long ago was this?"

"Only a minute. Or two. Please let me go!", it wailed.

Tachyon sighed, and carefully set the other bird down on the floor. "Go on, get out of here. You haven't been much help anyway." Resuming his original course, he stopped a second later. As an afterthought, he added, "Don't go this way - I'm going farther down the tunnel. Feel along the walls if necessary, but you have to go in the opposite direction if you want to get back to the surface." And please, whatever you do, make sure that you leave me alone, he almost said out loud.

Stunned, the Flicky called out a faint "thank you," before it hurriedly did as he suggested.

***

As Sonic approached the distant light the cavern grew brighter and brighter until he put the teleporter away altogether, its glowing screen no longer useful. The tunnel's curving walls gave way to flat, yellowish stone of some sort, the oddly-sized square and rectangular tiles that comprised its surface bearing strange and intricate designs.

As he drew closer he finally saw the light's source; huge, reddish crystals, growing from the ceiling in a sort of fan-shaped pattern, the longest ones almost as tall as he was. Other crystals grew out of the floor elsewhere, all reflecting each other's light in beautiful patterns. And nearby was what looked like a huge lake (water having seeped into the lower parts of the complex), the light reflecting off of its still surface and illuminating it down to its depths twenty feet below.

Under a high, vaulted ceiling he walked back and forth next to the untroubled waters, permitting himself a few minutes to rest and enjoy the area's tranquil beauty. Not to mention figure out how to cross that underground lake. He had never been much good at swimming, and his characteristic speed was negated underwater as the cells that generated his energy field would temporarily "short out".

Picking up a loose pebble near the entrance, he idly skipped it across the water. "Maybe," he said out loud to himself, more to break the perfect silence than anything else, "I could do something like th-Oof!"

Sonic was abruptly knocked onto his stomach, a heavy weight on his back making it hard to breathe and driving several sharp points into his skin. Clawed hands grabbed his head on either side of his spines, holding it in place as a familiar voice spoke. "Drop the teleporter, right now."

"Let go of me! Stupid bird. Ouch!"

Tachyon's lower claws dug in, breaking the skin in multiple places but not going any farther. "Continue to struggle and I will rip you open. I would do so right now, but I think that Shadow would much rather perform that task."

Rotating Sonic's head onto its side and holding it in place with one hand, he lifted the other to his beak. "Sir? I have incapacitated the hedgehog..." His prey struggled as his attention was momentarily distracted. In response Tachyon shifted his weight somewhat, pinpointing various nerves on Sonic's back and pressing his claws onto them, prompting a satisfying cry of pain.

But no answer from his communicator. "Hmm. Must be all this rock, or maybe those crystals are causing interference. Oh well, I would have had to do this anyway just to get you back to the fortress..." His left hand rummaged around in one of his belt's compartments, searching for a medical patch which was designed to apply a potent tranquilizer.

Heart racing, Sonic knew that this was it - his life was over, or would be in a few moments. Either Tachyon would kill him, or he would drag him back for this "Shadow" person to do so. Why did they want that teleporter so badly? Probably had something to do with those gems.

Well, they weren't going to get them. Lifting an arm, resisting the urge to cry out as his captor dug his claws into the hedgehog's back in response, he flung the teleporter into the water.

Most electronics were waterproof in 2097 AD, and the device in question was no exception. Unable to stop Sonic in time, Tachyon flinched as the teleporter impacted the water with a splash, spraying a few drops in their direction.

The hedgehog was given a very critical stare. "Do you have any idea how much of an annoyance you are?" Sonic just smiled as the falcon considered his options. He couldn't swim any more than the average fish could fly; should probably have one of the drones retrieve it. Most of them were incapable of functioning underwater, but there were several designs that had been deployed to this area. Surely one of them-

The silence was interrupted by an odd rumbling noise. Face right next to the perfectly clear pool, Sonic could see an underwater hatch of some sort slowly opening on the side opposite them, accompanied by the sound of rapid drainage.

Had the teleporter landed on a switch of some sort? Or maybe it was a timed mechanism. Either way, the water level was dropping and the teleporter was drifting away at an increasingly rapid pace.

"You disgusting little creature..." He leaped off of Sonic, leaving several long but not particularly deep cuts in the process, and flew above the pool for several feet before diving into it immediately above the teleporter. Sonic yelped in pain, but quickly picked himself up and watched as his former captor struggled with learning how to swim in an avian body while simultaneously trying to retrieve the device. Quite a bit of splashing was involved, and he raised an arm to cover his face.

He wasn't particularly good at swimming either, but he couldn't just let Tachyon get away with the teleporter! With a running start, Sonic leaped into the pool, almost landing on top of the other Mobian.

The air in the complex was chilly enough, but the water was positively frigid. Tachyon saw the hedgehog leap in after him, and lashed out with his lower claws, but was so uncoordinated underwater that the gesture might have prompted laughter on Sonic's part had he not been in a similar predicament. Trying to regain some semblance of balance in the water while simultaneously holding his breath, he nevertheless managed to grab the teleporter, much to Tachyon's visible dismay.

He tried to swim for the surface, falcon in awkward pursuit, but the current was much too strong by now and they were both pulled through the hatch in the wall. Down a dark, water-filled tunnel he went, unable to see anything, occasionally bumping into the stone walls, desperate for air...

And then surrounded by light, colliding with a solid object of some sort, the current pouring water over him for another few seconds before cutting off.

Was he dead? He looked around; no, he was back in that strange alternate universe, hand tightly gripping the teleporter and thumb pressed onto one of the buttons. He would have laughed out loud at his good fortune if he hadn't been both drenched and freezing, wet spines limply hanging in place.

Shivering violently, gasping for breath, he huddled there in the gravity-less environment for several minutes to permit recuperation. Pain was beginning to manifest itself in the cuts that Tachyon had made; Sonic checked, but the injuries didn't seem too deep and were already healing. No towels or similarly absorbent surfaces available, he shook himself rapidly to dry off, and the airborne droplets of water that had flown off during his fit of shivering tripled. He found the sight amusing, until he accidentally inhaled one and ended up choking somewhat as he "swam" away.

Sonic pondered his new situation. If he opened a portal here, he would likely end up either underwater or inside a wall. No, better to travel around for a little while, and then open a portal and see where it leads. Wait! He should get the next... gem, not knowing the proper terminology, first. The teleporter only worked in the real world when they were nearby, after all, so it shouldn't be too far away.

***

Having already verbally expressed his anger myriad times, Robotnik drove his hovercraft around the same underground ruins, silently frustrated. The same crystals which brightly illuminated his path also scattered his sensor readings and com signals, and he was by this time quite lost, unable to scan the area or even contact his base's mainframes.

Stupid crystals. Shadow had insisted that they were harvestable, useful as power sources. He came as close as he ever did to demanding when he asked that a team of robots be sent to dig a way in, and ever since he had kept allocating more and more resources to the project. Building a road that led to the entrance, setting up machinery to drain some of the water - this latter part would likely take years. Why, the complex probably covered a thousand square miles, with ninety percent underwater!

These figures were grossly exaggerated, but the ruins were, in fact, quite sprawling. And, he admitted to himself, the crystals were very useful; a large chunk would easily run one of his average-sized robots as long as it didn't do anything too power intensive. And they had become especially convenient to access ever since they discovered that the ruins stretched to a point immediately under his own complex, at which point the mining operation had been transferred over there.

But they were nowhere near as powerful as the Chaos Emeralds. A tiny shard would equal a nuclear fusion plant, and five or six entire emeralds could probably power an entire continent! Hopefully Shadow would have retrieved them by the time he returned. That stupid hedgehog had crippled his hovercraft and exhausted his patience, and by this time he wanted nothing more than to get back to his command center and finish implementing his plan.

Perhaps, if that "Sonic" was still in the colonies at the time, he would end up dead along with those who defied him. Yes, that was certainly a pleasant thought. How he would have loved to strangle the hedgehog... but he certainly couldn't catch him, and right now his hovercraft was too banged-up for him to risk a confrontation.

Which was exactly why he put it into high gear and fled when he saw the hedgehog approaching.

***

Sonic stepped out of the portal, looking around. Another large room, same tiled designs on the walls and floor. Huge crystal formations, here and there. Dry, except for the portal's immediate vicinity; no matter how hard he tried he couldn't seem to completely dry off. Especially his shoes, which were quite waterlogged.

Back in normal gravity, he experimentally took a few steps, water squishing out of his shoes. Perhaps a good run would help dry him off... A dozen or so laps around the wide, vaulted area, and most of the excess moisture was removed from his spines.

Now all he had to do was find a way out. He checked the teleporter's map, but it had such a short range that it wasn't of much help in the huge complex.

A familiar electronic noise - Robotnik's hovercraft was nearby. Sonic's first instinct was to run and hide, but he suppressed it, reminding himself of why he was there. And of his successes so far; last he'd checked the hovercraft was crippled, its driver in retreat. Unless Robotnik had managed to refit it in the last sixty minutes or so, that should still be the case.

Spotting the vehicle on the far side of the room, he resumed the chase that had brought him to the labyrinth, with renewed vigor.

***

Robotnik knew that his machine couldn't possibly outrun Sonic. But he was beginning to recognize the area's features; this section of the ruins was near his own complex, close to the crystal mining operation.

The vehicle ascended up a long, nearly vertical shaft, odd projections and statues dotting it. Certainly didn't make much sense for the place to be built that way unless one could fly, and even with the aid of a hovercraft his progress was slow. It was very difficult to pilot it through the narrow passageway, and it kept bumping into the walls and other features.

***

The hovercraft had ascended again! But, Sonic thought as he looked up at the departing, egglike vehicle, that won't stop me this time.

With the same co-ordination that he'd displayed at Springyard he leaped onto each ledge, swung around the statues - fierce animals of some sort, growling menacingly out of the wall - pushing himself higher and higher. It was exhausting, but he drove himself onward out of sheer willpower. All fear was driven away, pushed out of his mind to be replaced by enthusiasm and fury; anger that this Overlander had the nerve to threaten everyone's lives, that he'd destroyed the museum, enslaved those animals.

In fact, it seemed as if his fear had been transferred to the human, who was experiencing it for the first time in a long while. Increasingly unsteady hands manipulated the hovercraft's controls and it bumped into the walls more and more frequently, causing small dents in the chassis and raining tiny fragments of stone down on Sonic.

The hedgehog did not let that stop him, though, only pausing for a second or two so as to blink the dust out of his eyes. He continued, leaping from ledge to ledge like an Olympic gymnast could only hope to do after a long while spent practicing. Almost slipping once or twice; the strain was accumulating, and his muscles were beginning to cramp.

Hours passed, or at least it seemed that way. The shaft itself was several hundred feet high, and it became increasingly difficult for him to keep up. The gap between Sonic and the hovercraft grew larger and larger...

Finally, he pulled himself over a last obstruction to reach the top almost a full minute after Robotnik had arrived and subsequently departed. Having alternately fled, pursued and dueled some of the most dangerous people on Mobius in a single day, the exhausted ten-year-old collapsed on the stone floor.

***

When he regained consciousness, Tachyon was sprawled out on a similar floor, facing upwards, wings spread out to either side. He hadn't completely dried off; a small puddle was collecting in the grooves of the tiles' engravings. His immediate vicinity was somewhat darker than the rest of the complex, the nearby crystals having been reduced to a fraction of their normal size by harvesting.

Coughing a few times, he otherwise remained stationary, his strength depleted in every way. The stone was hardly comfortable, but he had no desire to move. He had already used ample energy in trying to fight the current, holding his breath far longer than he was used to, and then finally pulling himself up out of the nearby pool that the water had drained into.

He knew what would be awaiting him if he got up, anyway. He would return to the complex, and Shadow would kill him for his gross incompetence. Either that, or torture him until he wished he were dead. The thought of running away didn't occur to Tachyon even once, but he did ponder remaining on that floor for another year or so.

No, he couldn't... he started coughing again, and pulled himself to a standing position to expel the stray water from his lungs. He took several steps away from the nearby pool, never wanting to be anywhere near a large body of water again.

One of his clawed feet stepped on something warm. He jumped, and took a closer look, squinting in the darkness; it was that hedgehog, passed out next to a deep shaft of some sort.

Tachyon moaned. Sonic had been nothing but trouble, and he was not anxious to have to deal with him again. It actually took his tired brain several seconds to realize that his "target" was unconscious and completely vulnerable.

He searched for the teleporter; it was still clutched in one of the hedgehog's hands, screen facing the floor. Attaching it to his belt out of duty, past feeling elation at his victory, he tried to figure out what to do next. Since he was in absolutely no condition to carry Sonic back to the complex, Shadow would want him to kill the hedgehog by himself.

He carried no weapons; his claws had always been adequate for the sort of assassinations that he performed. But his predatory instinct was still asleep in a distant corner of his mind, and the thought of applying those claws to Sonic's inert form only revolted him. Of course, he could hardly disobey Shadow...

The falcon surveyed his prey, trying to take a clinical view of the situation, to remember his training. But he had absolutely no desire to kill him, whether out of vengeance or duty. Unsteady claws shook, and refused to lift from the floor.

His unwillingness to execute his task (along with the hedgehog) distressed him. To fail was one thing, but here was Sonic right in front of him! To voluntarily disobey Shadow meant death. He tried to remember the misery that the hedgehog had caused him, to concentrate on how much he had interfered with Shadow's glorious plans. But all that would come to mind was how _wrong_ it was to destroy a helpless child.

"Why?" The question wasn't directed to anyone in particular, and echoed off of the stone walls. What was so terrible about doing his duty? If anything, it would be wrong to disobey. He owed everything to Shadow, and to fail to perform his task would be a supreme act of ingratitude.

Don't you remember?

Tachyon was not on speaking terms with his conscience, and the quiet "voice" was unfamiliar. But, he thought, at least I'm getting somewhere now. And, no; whatever it is, I don't remember. Not at all.

But the memories returned. Faint at first, increasing in vibrancy. He was back in the marble ruins; but these were not ruins. It was a massive, glorious fortress, impenetrable to even the most determined attacker.

And the black, feline Mobian standing in front of him was not Shadow the weakling, who manipulated Robotnik behind the scenes. This was Shadow the invincible tyrant, holder of the eighth emerald, not to mention a good deal of the planet. The immense, greenish gemstone was mounted on top of an obsidian cane of some sort, ornate decorations dropped in favor of an almost imposing simplicity. Not just a symbol of power, it was the source thereof.

The Eighth Chaos Emerald was reputed to contain all the evil caused by the other emeralds. And indeed, it grew larger and larger, glowed more brightly with every wantonly sadistic act. Shadow did not care for such "primitive" distinctions as Good and Evil, but instead attributed its growth to his continual, chaotic triumph over order.

Tachyon practically worshipped his master, who had raised him for as long as he could remember. In the mind of the much younger and smaller falcon - not quite nine years old yet - Shadow was infallible. The cat treated him as a pet more than anything else, studying falconry as a hobby and frequently bringing him on hunting trips.

Those were pleasant memories. Rapidly descending from the sky, grabbing a small, unintelligent animal and quickly ending its life. Shadow personally cleaning and cooking it, then serving it at dinner, proudly describing Tachyon's skill to whichever of his associates happened to be visiting at the time.

But Shadow had much bigger plans in mind for his pet. And if Tachyon was to be his personal bodyguard, aide and assassin, he would need to be trained for the part. He needed to learn complete loyalty, to be taught that any life that defied Shadow was automatically forfeit, no longer of value.

And so, the falcon was quite surprised to see a couple of Shadow's spidery, mechanized battle drones bringing an even younger, Mobian raccoon before him and his master. Without preamble, the cat simply told him that, "This creature has intruded onto my property. Do kill it, please, Tachyon."

He advanced, somewhat hesitant at the other child's crying and pleading for mercy. Perhaps he questioned Shadow's orders; likely the feline simply ignored it. This was entirely different from diving onto an unsuspecting herbivore, but he obeyed anyway.

It was a very messy kill. The "creature" screamed hysterically, driving needles of guilt into him that were almost as sharp as his own claws. Claws which tore and slashed at their target, all finesse forgotten, as their traumatized owner tried to end the experience as soon as possible.

He remembered stepping back, being revolted at the other Mobian's remains, regurgitating uncontrollably and crying for the first and only time in his existence. Being humiliated by Shadow's scornful glare. Hating himself; knowing that he had taken a sentent life.

After that experience Shadow had rigorously instructed him in the craft of assassination, teaching him dozens of ways to kill using only his claws. Providing him with more and more live targets until his shocked, guilt-stricken mind had learned to turn itself entirely over to instinct as a defense mechanism.

But this time it would not come, and he found himself totally unable to kill the hedgehog. He could only remember that other child dying horribly, over and over again... the corners of his eyes began to moisten, and he immediately forced himself to stop thinking about it, berating himself for his weakness.

The sound of footsteps in the distance, echoing through the area and quickly rising in volume. Not mechanical, but rubber-soled. There weren't supposed to be any humans in the area - they couldn't be permitted to ask questions about himself, or the teleporter!

He quickly took flight, headed in the opposite direction, careful not to bump into the walls and silently relieved that they had forced his departure. Hopefully, Shadow would be pleased enough at receiving the emeralds that he would not kill him.

***

The two human soldiers ran through the underground ruins, boots thudding onto the stone floor. A look over the shoulder; hopefully they had lost their robotic pursuers somewhere back in Robotnik's complex. Where were they now? Some sort of catacombs under the complex?

The one signaled for the other to stop, pointing ahead. There were two indistinct shapes there; a fluttering of wings, and one was gone. Another one of the bat-like scout drones! Automatic weapons were raised, triggers pulled. The incredible acoustics of the cavern amplified the gunshots, the endless ricocheting off of stone walls and the high-pitched, avian shriek which followed.

"Hold your fire!" The one put a hand in front of the other, this time. "Probably just a seagull or something. Musta got lost in here."

"What's that, on the floor?"

They walked over and investigated. The inert form of a Mobian hedgehog, lying next to a huge pit. "Look, it's that ambassador's nephew!"

"Is he dead?"

The other checked. "No, just unconscious."

"Pick him up and let's get going; we have to get out of here. Watch out that you don't prick yourself on those quills."

"Yes, sir."


	5. Star Light Zone

Chapter 5

Star Light Zone

---------------

When Sonic woke up, he was in the back seat of some sort of vehicle. It was very dark, and he couldn't easily make out the interior features; looking out of the window revealed that he was several hundred feet off of the ground, on some sort of road suspended above most of the buildings. The Speed Highway, he remembered. It was nighttime by now, and the starry sky was cloudless.

He was still sore, and his aching muscles protested when he got up to look out of the window. Too tired to remember his seatbelt, he sprawled out on the seat and went back to sleep. The ride was both quiet and smooth, hardly any bumps or vibrations disturbing his rest.

Several minutes later he was awakened. Someone opened the door and led him out, through the much more brightly-lit hallways of an unfamiliar building; his eyes squinted, and he wished that they could remain closed. It didn't occur to him to ask where they were going. He simply assumed that he was being taken back to his uncle, seeing as how his escorts hadn't shot him.

And, sure enough, he was. Jerome and Sir Charles had been forced out of the general's office when she began campaigning in earnest, and he met them in a lobby downstairs. Sonic's uncle quickly ran over and hugged him - being careful not to get his arms pricked - while the human stood up and watched in silent relief.

Sir Charles spoke, detaching himself from his nephew. "We were worried sick about you, Sonic. Why'd you run off like that?" 

Sonic groaned, hardly wanting to remember it all, and being physically depleted. "Can I sit down first? My arms and legs hurt all over."

The young hedgehog did so, and Jerome took his statement as a cue to retrieve a few pain-killer tablets from a nearby vending machine, along with a cup of water from the office cooler. Sonic was not thirsty at all after his recent swimming experience, but forced it down anyway rather than swallow the pills alone.

At his uncle's insistence he began his story, starting with the playground bullies and (more importantly) Robotnik's unprovoked attack in the Green Hill Wilderness Zone. Reliving the experience, he almost started crying again as all of the unpleasant memories came back to the surface. "Why do the humans have to be so mean? They..." He sniffled a little. It was very difficult to say, but he forced the words out. "They killed Mom and Dad, and that man in the hovercraft tried to kill me, too!"

An awkward look on his face, Jerome stepped over to the far side of the room, while the receptionist pretended not to hear the conversation.

"They aren't all like that, Sonic." He tried to come up with an example. "Right before the Great War started, Jerome and a bunch of other young humans were participating in an exchange student program. They wanted to learn more about our culture." Of course, the visit had lasted quite a bit longer than intended when war broke out...

"Yeah, so they could learn our weaknesses and conquer us better." The remark was heavy with sarcasm, as Sonic began to remember being upset at his uncle for bringing him to the colonies in the first place.

"That's not true, and you know it."

His mood went back from anger to sadness, as if his subconscious couldn't decide which would torment him more effectively. "But if there are supposed to be a lot of nice humans out there, why did they start the war?"

"Sonic... back then, the human leaders were bad people. They wanted more territory and more power. Most humans didn't want a war, but after years and years of untrue television broadcasts..." Sir Charles sighed. This wasn't working quite as well as he'd hoped. "They used to be our allies, you know."

Dejectedly leaning forward with his chin in his hands and his elbows on his knees, Sonic briefly looked over to his uncle at this but said nothing.

"It's true. A long time ago, the Great Kingdom was falling apart. A bunch of people across the planet had gotten control of the Chaos Emeralds: powerful gems, each with its own unique ability."

Sonic began listening intently, actually staring at his uncle, and the story continued. "They were nearly invincible, with or without their armies. Some even say that they'd discovered immortality. But they fought amongst themselves; always quarreling and bickering, like little children. Together they'd almost taken over the whole of Mobius, but they just couldn't get along."

"Then, someone on a distant island found the legendary eighth emerald. It was more powerful than all the others put together, and when it got near the other Chaos Emeralds it could control them. He defeated the other holders of the emeralds, and with the combined power of all eight gems behind him he was ready to finish destroying whatever free cities had escaped the war."

"What happened to the emeralds?" Sonic had to know, and the question was almost frantic. He was sure that he'd heard the story before, maybe in history class, but the details had escaped his mind.

"That's what I was getting to. A human starship, built with Cocytan technology, visited Mobius. They wanted to colonize our planet and make friends with us, and when they found out about what was going on... well, the war ended quickly. With their advanced weapons they could just shoot at the enemy bases from orbit, vaporize entire armies without ever putting themselves in danger. Near as anyone can tell, Shadow - the one with the eighth emerald, that I told you about - was killed, and the emeralds themselves somehow scattered to who-knows-where."

Sonic was not interested in what had happened with the humans; only the emeralds, as his youthful mind began to piece things together. "An alternate universe, or something?"

"Maybe. Nobody really knows. Why do you ask?"

And Sonic told him, the older hedgehog growing more worried with every second. The last time the emeralds had been discovered, war had almost annihilated the entire kingdom. What would happen now?

***

"Walters! I want us in a nice, even, hull-down firing position behind that hill in front of us. Have the rest of the platoon follow, broad formation."

"Yes, sir!"

The sleek _Firehawk 2_ Main Battle Tanks hovered about eighteen inches above the hillside, finally positioning themselves so that their main hulls were unexposed while their turrets - huge, long range rail guns - had a clear shot at the immense fortress/complex several miles distant. Originally designed to combat Mobian dragons during the Great War, their primary composite plating was covered with an additional layer of ablative armor, which would melt off of the tank when exposed to high heat instead of retaining it and further weakening the structure. Extra heat sinks had been a part of the initial concept, but were dropped after the war in favor of additional ammunition.

"Colson! Check with the targetting satellite. I want us aiming at something that'll blow up real good when we shoot at it."

"Yo."

"And, Firehawk?" It was customary to address vehicles by their designation. "Tell HQ that we're ready to start shooting as soon as they say the word." A faint electronic beep and a green light on his helmet's display indicated that the computer had heard him. A smaller window on that display showed the view in front of their tank - dozens of assorted, allied units taking up positions ahead, infantrymen dismounting from their carriers. With the range their tanks' rail guns had, it was arguably the smartest thing to place them in back of the rest of the group.

"Boss, what's up with that pronunciation?"

He turned around to face the gunner's station. "What do you mean?"

"That way you don't pronounce the 'h'."

A blank look. "So?"

"Well, you see, boss, the awk is an extinct, flightless bird. And I'd much rather be in a fire-_hawk_ than a fire-_awk_, know what I mean?"

He rolled his eyes. "Be quiet, Colson." Ahead and below him, Private Walters chuckled from the driver's console. Their gunner could be a serious pain in the neck, but at least he helped make sure that the mood was never too tense. A tad on the unprofessional side, but the military was far too undermanned to be picky.

A transmission came in on his helmet's radio, and he put his own microphone to his mouth immediately afterwards. "The word is given. Open fire!"

***

Perhaps ten minutes later Sonic was still in the same chair, hungrily munching on a bag of hastily purchased and prepared microwave popcorn after being reminded that he hadn't eaten dinner. It wasn't an actual meal, but it satiated him somewhat.

He had finished telling his story, but the discussion continued. "You should have seen it. As soon as that Robotnik guy saw me, he took off up some huge shaft. He was actually scared of me!" He smiled as he continued eating.

His uncle nodded, almost solemnly. "Sonic, you have some very special and powerful abilities. Not one Mobian in a million can do those things - probably more like one in a hundred million. Or fewer."

The younger hedgehog swallowed another mouthful. "Why can't everyone run like I can? Why am I the only one?"

"Well, you aren't the _only_ one. There are probably others out there in the world that are just as fast. And your great-grandfather could run like that, too."

That was news to him. "Really?"

Sir Charles nodded. "He led a group of freedom fighters against Shadow when he was trying to take over the world. And before that, another ancestor of yours had the same abilities."

The significance of this statement was just beginning to sink in when something occurred to Sonic. "Where are the emeralds now? Did the humans take 'em while I was asleep?"

***

Tachyon walked through the complex's upper corridors, passing by the occasional sentry drone. He hardly staggered despite his injuries, more out of pride than anything else. The humans' primitive projectile weapons had torn several large holes in his left wing, and while the last of his spray foam had stopped the bleeding it had not killed the pain. Not to mention that when it was removed, several important feathers would likely come with it if he wasn't careful.

Lacerated muscles struggled to hold his wing up, stretched out to the side, his right wing assisting. The bones had been broken, and he had been unable to find a position that was any less uncomfortable. It had been easier to manage in the zero-gravity environment of Space-Time Five, when he had stopped to retrieve a sixth emerald on the way, but now...

Leaning his wing against the wall, he permitted himself a moment of rest before he entered the command center.

Robotnik was present at the time, along with Shadow. The cat's eyes widened noticeably at the teleporter on Tachyon's belt, but he quickly concealed his enthusiasm and almost managed to sound apathetic. "Oh, good, you finally retrieved the emeralds." A desperate, unspoken question was issued through eye contact, and the falcon lowered his head in response. No, the eighth emerald had not been among those found.

Shadow walked over and grabbed the device, asking, "How did you manage to get the teleporter back?" The question was impatient, part of it stemming from his irritation at not being reunited with his favorite gemstone.

"Well..." He averted his eyes, but answered truthfully nevertheless. No use lying to Shadow, he could see right through any pitiful excuses the falcon made. "Priority Hedgehog was unconscious, and I took it from him."

"Oh, good. And I suppose you incurred those distasteful injuries in the process of killing him?" It was obvious that Shadow did not genuinely believe that the hedgehog was capable of harming Tachyon in that manner.

"No; some human soldiers shot at me." He was becoming increasingly uncomfortable with this line of questioning.

"How unfortunate. Then you were able to destroy Sonic without any further damage to yourself?

"No. I..." His voice cracked. A long pause; Tachyon swallowed audibly. He knew what was going to happen. "I didn't want to kill him, sir."

Retaliation was instantaneous. A surprisingly strong blow to the side of his face - he was knocked onto the floor, looking back up in time to see jet black, crystalline claws descend on his injured wing. If he'd had teeth he would have gritted them as he quickly braced himself; his avian face contorted, and a brief cry escaped his beak despite his best efforts.

He closed his eyes in anticipation of what would come next. But the room was silent, except for the background noise made by the electronics, and his own terrified breathing. Eyes reopened to see the look of disdain on Shadow's face that the cat reserved for times such as this. "You pathetic, incompetent, cowering weakling. Get up and repair yourself." The term 'heal' might have been more appropriate, but Shadow reserved it for lifes that actually mattered. The falcon was his property, and they both knew it.

Tachyon was no longer able to keep his wing stretched out, and it hung limply and painfully at his side as he stood up and staggered through the door. It seemed as if the now quite stained wing was on fire; horrible, piercing agony coming from every wound, intensified tenfold with any sudden movement. But even more painful was the damage done to his fragile heart. He didn't care what Sonic, or Robotnik, or anyone else thought of him; the only opinion that mattered was that of Shadow. His master, his trainer, his entire reason for living.

And at that time, Shadow saw him as being lower than dirt.

At least he hadn't been killed; only a small consolation. The cat was probably just too busy. He dragged himself to his nearly bare quarters and carefully proceeded to set, splint and bandage his broken wing. The process was both excruciating and time-consuming, and by the time he was finished the only thing his tired brain could think of doing was huddling in his small, corner nest and going to sleep.

***

"Thank you for disciplining that bird of yours. Though I probably would have had him killed, myself." The repulsive human marched over to stand next to Shadow.

"I can't afford to take the time to enjoy it properly. Those human soldiers are already bombarding the complex." Quickly, before Robotnik had a chance to respond, he handed him the teleporter. "Here are the emeralds. Why don't you go personally install them in the engine? I think it's about time the military learned to fear you." Not to mention, thought Shadow, that a counter-attack will buy me some time.

***

"Photon torpedo... away!"

This pronouncement was followed by the loud noise of a rail gun discharging, and a tiny explosion on the distant complex. The tank's shells were hardly the matter/antimatter explosives of Star Trek fame, but with several vehicles firing at once the effects were beginning to accumulate.

The commander groaned. "You've been watching too much TV again, Mister Spock." This last part was spoken with no small degree of sarcasm, but he was smiling nonetheless.

Colson brought his face away from the viewfinder and assumed a pseudo-English accent that never failed to irritate those people they'd met who possessed the genuine article. "No, no, you imbecile. Spock is the science officer, not the man at the weapons console."

This exchange was interrupted by an incredibly bright light outside; viewfinders and HUD displays automatically adjusted to compensate. There was a sizzling noise, as armor melted off of the vehicle in huge chunks. Heat sinks were activated, and the tank shut down entirely to prevent overheating.

Then all was silent, and perfectly dark.

***

Shadow spoke with the larger human over a monitor in the control room. "I think the WaveStar did pretty well in its trial run." He smiled, tapping a few buttons and sending Robotnik pictures from the external cameras.

The human frowned. "You only used it at seven percent power?"

"Well, I didn't want to end up scorching the complex. Not to mention that it will take several hours for the capacitors to fully charge."

A shrug. "Target the military base next, full power. Then see if you can't contact the government. You know my list of demands."

Shadow nodded. "Well, like I said, it will take some time."

"I don't mind." In truth, he was almost pleased. It would give him one last shot at killing the hedgehog personally... he walked away from the Chaos Engine's console, preparing to overhaul his hovercraft yet again.

***

The commander looked about him; he could barely see anything in the now dark, cramped confines of the tank, and his hearing was muffled by the helmet he wore. "Walters?"

A voice from the driver's station. "Here."

"Colson?"

"Yo."

Faint interior lights activated as the vehicle began its automatic startup sequence, tiny progress reports scrolling across the interior of his helmet. "Firehawk, status." Words appeared in the corner of every display. Frontal ablative armor coverage at 22%, internal systems nominal.

He grinned. "People, we are still in business!" Other reports came from the rest of the tanks. Number three was immobilized, but all four were otherwise operational.

Their cheers were interrupted by an external video feed sent to their helmets as the cameras came back online. The grass in front of their platoon was fried, and distant trees were reduced to smoking stumps. Every vehicle ahead of them was thoroughly melted, flame spouting from the wrecks.

Except for a low whistle, the crewmen were silent until their commander spoke into his microphone. "All units: Scatter. Except tank three, which obviously isn't moving anywhere 'till we can get a crane out here. Take up positions at least a mile distant, and find cover." He lifted his finger from the transmit button and addressed the computer. "Firehawk...", he distinctly pronounced the 'h', "contact the base. Find out what in the world that was."

***

The lobby's television was activated. Jerome and both of the Mobians were watching the news update intently, and the receptionist removed her reading glasses to see the screen better. Stock footage of the WaveStar's deployment was being displayed, followed by computer-generated images of the satellite in space, as a female newscaster narrated with the slightest hint of uneasiness in her voice. "In a highly alarming new development in the struggle to retake the military's Green Hill research complex, Mobian Aerospace's new orbital power transmitter - the WaveStar satellite - was detected bombarding a large group of military vehicles with lethal amounts of electromagnetic radiation. Bomb shelters have been opened, and government officials advise citizens not to panic..."

Sonic's heart sank. Orbital bombardment quickly ended a war years ago. Would it start a new one?

"Several rockets are already being mounted with explosive charges at the Sapphire City space center..."

How long would this one last? How powerful was that satellite?

"...designed to include the optional feature of distributing energy beamed to orbit by a ground-based transmitter station, the WaveStar was intended to permit power to be sold to distant regions of Mobius..."

The human soldiers hadn't found the teleporter, so either it had been lost or someone else had retrieved it. Maybe Tachyon had found it.

"...apparently subjected to secret modifications, and defense analysts theorize that added components included a powerful focusing lens..."

If the Chaos Emeralds had been installed in that "ground-based transmitter station", it could probably put out obscene amounts of energy. And in order for the satellite to possibly be able to handle it, they would have had to be planning for this all along.

"...no immediate danger is projected, but experts suggest staying in a cellar or indoor room with no windows..."

Almost eighty years ago, one of his ancestors had fought to keep the emeralds for being used for this sort of thing. And Sonic had already given those robots and that hovercraft a good beating without having any training or experience, let alone a decent idea of what was going on.

"...we repeat, please remain indoors and do not try to leave the city..."

Yeah, right. He remembered that voice on Tachyon's communicator; the humans were in mortal danger. And now he knew how. Was this why he had his abilities? Was he meant to stop this from happening? He certainly seemed to be doing a pretty good job as it was.

What was the fastest way to that complex? Probably the Speed Highway. An almost-whooshing noise, and the dark blue hedgehog was gone before his uncle could even issue a word of protest.

Jerome and Sir Charles exchanged glances. "Now what?", the human queried.

Sir Charles quickly pondered the situation. "I saw how he was watching that broadcast." A sigh. "He's probably run off to try to stop that Robotnik person."

"Well, after you were going on like that about his 'unique abilities' I might not be too surprised." Little sarcasm in his voice, just a factual statement.

Another sigh. "Does the Speed Highway run to that complex?"

"I think it runs to the Green Hill zone itself... surely you aren't thinking of chasing Sonic down." Even with a hovercraft, to pursue the hedgehog was an exercise in futility.

The Mobian shook his head. "No. If I can't catch him, I'm going to help him." Jerome's eyebrows raised a little at this, but he saw the logic in his companion's line of reasoning. He had read about the modest hedgehog's Great War exploits in the newspapers. If anyone could match Sonic's prowess - if not his speed - it was Sir Charles.

"Unfortunately, we are currently without a hovercraft. And the normal roads leading out of town are going to be totally jammed in the next ten minutes or so when everyone tries to evacuate the city." No matter how much the "experts" reassured everyone, it was inevitable and they all knew it.

A small, plastic card was thrown in their direction, and the Mobian caught it. "You can use mine," the receptionist called out.

Jerome felt a little sheepish that their entire conversation had been overheard, but there was no time to dwell on that. No time to ponder why, or to do more than issue a quick "Thank you" before running off to the elevator. For all they knew, they could already be out of time... who knew when that satellite would fire again?

***

The door leading to the complex's Speed Highway garage was unlocked, and Sonic had set out onto the elevated roads. No... VERY elevated roads came closer to being accurate. He was probably several hundred feet off of the ground. The streetlights and highway signs almost lent an air of normalcy, but every time his glance strayed from the road he could see distant buildings, or the sides of exceptionally tall skyscrapers. The guardrails were a little shorter than he was - hardly adequate, he thought, especially when the road dips and turns - but every time he got near them he could feel a faint tingling, especially in the clusters of cells that generated his own energy field. Probably some kind of safeguard that worked with hovercar systems.

Still running at high speeds, he experimentally brought himself nearer the rails. Whatever field they exerted had little effect on him, but he looked over the side of the road out of curiosity and was treated to an acrophobia-inducing view of tiny, heavily congested streets far below. He quickly pulled himself away, closer to the center of the highway. This was too important for him to stop out of fear!

Determination filled him anew as he willed himself to concentrate on the road ahead, on getting to his destination. But it was gradually pushed aside as he began to calm down. The road was completely free of traffic - he wondered why - and even though he couldn't run at his full speeds (to keep from accidentally going over the side) he was enjoying himself. There were precious few places that he knew of where he could run on such a clear track for so long, and he almost wanted to slow down just to prolong the experience!

At one point he did stop briefly, just to check a road sign. A quick glance told him which direction the Green Hill Wilderness Zone was in, and not even half a second later he was off again, not even noticing the prominent "Road Closed" and "Construction Area" warnings.

***

Jerome was on his hands and knees in the Speed Highway garage, reaching one arm under the car that had been indicated on the electronic key; a key which was currently somewhere under the vehicle, and defying all of his attempts to find it in the dim light.

"Could you please hurry up?"

He sighed, and stood up. The human had once written a small program for his computer when he had locked himself out of his own car... holding the grayish tablet up to the door, he issued a verbal instruction. "Crystal, neutralize this locking mechanism."

A click, and the doors were unlocked, to be quickly opened and shut again as the two climbed into the hovercar. Awkwardly buckling his seatbelt, the Mobian turned to face Jerome, a quizzical look on his face. "You call your computer Crystal?"

"You call your nephew Sonic?"

Sir Charles shrugged, and the human looked around at the control panels, indecision revealed in his expression. "Please tell me," he asked Jerome, "that you know how to drive one of these things."

"Well... I once drove a hovering vehicle at some amusement park in Sapphire City."

He didn't quite know how to interpret that. "Oh."

"It was a bumper car."

A worried look. "Oh dear."

"It crashed."

No time to back out now... he tried to remain calm as he watched the human finally press a few buttons on his computer, and the hovercraft's quiet engine started up. Tiny lights and displays came on everywhere; it was remarkably reminiscent of being in the cockpit of a jet aircraft. Or a spaceplane - it was painfully obvious that Jerome didn't even know which button deactivated the radio. He started frantically searching for the appropriate control when it came to life along with the rest of the vehicle, tuned to some hard rock station and broadcasting the incoherent noise that an alarming number of humans referred to as "music."

After finally pressing the correct button, Jerome's normally calm eyes were wide, and Sir Charles' spines looked as if they could be used to batter down a wall.

The Mobian tried to catch his breath. "Maybe," he suggested, "you should put the radio on a news station. So we can find out what's going on."

Jerome shook his head. "I'm not even going to try. If this thing has a self-destruct button, I'll probably find it instead. Now, let's see... if it's anything like my ground car, this little pedal down here should make it go forward..."

***

It took less than a second for Sonic to realize that he'd gone the wrong way. Orange contruction cones on either side, emitting some sort of field that would have deflected a hovercar but had negligible effect on the hedgehog; and then a more traditional, wooden barrier immediately ahead. He leaped over it, curling into a ball and spinning in midair...

...but did not land on solid ground. When he uncurled and extended his feet he simply continued to tumble around in the air. Instantly he knew what had happened - he had leaped over the side, and now he was falling towards the ground and would painfully impact with it in the next few seconds. His heart raced wildly, and his eyes closed and refused to open.

But his tumbling gradually stabilized. He wasn't falling - he was just floating there. What was going on?

Eyes gradually opened. Five feet below him was some sort of grayish, circular platform, perhaps ten feet in diameter. An industrial grade anti-gravity platform, to all appearances, commonly used in construction. But there was no one around to operate it... maybe they'd all run off when they heard about the satellite. And left their equipment on.

From his position he could see over the sides of the road, and he instantly became dizzy. No, couldn't let himself get disoriented, he had to get off of the platform somehow. He tried to "swim" through the air, kicking his legs out and frantically reaching for the edge. Perhaps, as he exerted himself, his own energy field interacted with that of the device; at any rate, after several minutes he had freed himself and promptly fell onto the concrete, on his stomach.

"Oof!" His breath was knocked out of his lungs, and he allowed himself to remain prone for several seconds before sitting up.

***

Not even twenty-four hours had passed since Sonic and Robotnik's first encounter, and already the "doctor" had developed quite a vendetta against "Priority Hedgehog". Perhaps he was also beginning to understand Sonic's behavior patterns, as his hovercraft was flying above the Speed Highway and scanning for Mobian lifesigns.

Naturally, he was very pleased to find Sonic - in a sadistic sort of way - and even more pleased to find that he wasn't moving. Was he dead already? That would spoil everything... no, he was just sitting there, for some reason.

The hovercraft was maneuvered directly over its target, and with the press of a button a roughly basketball-sized, spiked explosive was dropped. With the total absence of noticeable air currents at the time, he thought, it should quite effectively annihilate the Mobian.

But there was no explosion. What had happened??

***

Sonic hadn't been sitting next to the platform for more than a few seconds before he heard an odd whistling noise, coming down on top of him. He stood and looked upwards, trying to figure out what it was - until it stopped all of a sudden, and there was some sort of spiked sphere hovering in the platform's anti-gravity field.

Another look upward. A couple of the stars were moving; no doubt Robotnik's hovercraft. The human was after him _again_? And it didn't take too much creativity to figure out what the bomb was for.

He could have just run away and be done with it. There was no way that Robotnik could catch him. But he didn't want to see all the construction equipment get blown up, not to mention that by then he was quite angry with his nemesis as well.

Sonic quickly circumnavigated the platform, searching for the controls.

***

After dealing with his anger in decidedly unconstructive ways, such as banging his fists on the console and screaming several words that don't bear repeating, the human repositioned his hovercraft, staring into a targeting scope. Yes... it looked like an anti-gravity field generator was down there. No wonder.

He attempted to maneuver his vehicle precisely, lining Sonic up in a set of crosshairs.

***

Sonic stared at the control panel. Goodness, it certainly looked a lot more complicated than they did on the movies. Which buttons did what? And what arcane information was the screen trying to convey? He had to hurry. Would the bomb detonate when it made contact with something? Or was there a timer as well?

Not knowing of any more effective solution, he began experimenting with the controls. There was no visible effect, until the bomb began to drop towards the platform. No no no, bad idea, turn the knob the other way, quick!

Maybe a little too quickly, he thought, as he watched the explosive fly into the air abruptly. No, wait... this was probably a good thing.

***

Robotnik's concentration was briefly interrupted by a huge explosion rocking his hovercraft and threatening to fling him out onto the ground, several hundred feet below. It was immediately followed by another concussion as the vehicle's attached bomb bay was ruptured and blew itself open, to vent the explosion out into the air.

At this point he was infuriated. He wanted so desperately to just rip the hedgehog apart... but no, his vehicle was far too damaged to permit that. Limping it back to his complex, he consoled himself with the thought that his satellite would quite possibly fry Sonic along with the other humans, and found himself actively hoping that the government didn't want to negotiate.

***

Sonic stared up at the sky, quite pleased with himself. The tiny lights on the hovercraft were now flying away; apparently it hadn't been destroyed, but forcing another retreat was pleasant enough. Not to mention that it let him know which direction he should go in.

Once again feeling downright invincible, he made his way around the construction equipment and set off down the highway.


	6. Scrap Brain Zone

Chapter 6

Scrap Brain Zone

------------------

Fifteen years ago, you couldn't have told Boston Low that he'd be commanding a spacecraft again - let alone a five-mile-long interstellar colony ship.

No; he corrected himself. It would have been more like a hundred years by then, but being in suspended animation tended to do weird things to one's sense of chronology.

Back then he'd already flown on the Space Shuttle several times, once as its commander. The infamous _Discovery_ incident. A grievous error on the part of ground control had resulted in the shuttle being fueled insufficiently, but superb piloting skill had allowed him to save the vehicle and its crew in a day when everybody relied on computers and autopilots.

He was practically world-famous after that, but had hated the attention. He wasn't particularly outgoing; didn't thrive on interviews and social functions the way some people did. So, after giving a couple of speeches and signing a few endorsements, he'd retired to an apartment in San Fransisco. Some had wondered why he hadn't chosen a certain New England city, but he figured that being born in and named after Boston was more than enough.

It had been a pleasantly quiet life. After a year or so he was practically forgotten outside of the space community itself, and more than able to relax while the retirement checks rolled in.

And then Atilla came; or rather, a huge asteroid bearing the name of the ancient warlord. The astronomers predicted that it would smack into the planet in the next few days, and international governments were actually able to mobilize in record time. A plan was devised, and Russian-made nuclear explosives were procured for the purpose of diverting the rock's path minutely, into a stable orbit. A team of the greatest professionals in their fields was assembled for the shuttle mission, and the bureaucrats had apparently decided that Boston would make the perfect commander.

The thought hadn't appealed to him, but they were insistent. Oh, won't you pretty please come? We'll never ever bother you again. We'll throw in such absurd sums of money that you can retire in _style_. He genuinely didn't want to "retire in style", but relented nevertheless. Partially because the thought of a giant space rock splashing into the Pacific and sending tidal waves his way was not very appealing.

It was supposed to be a simple operation. Set the charges in the right spots, return to the shuttle, press a few buttons in the prescribed order and you get two explosions and one diverted rock. And they did. Everything worked perfectly, right up to the point when they returned to the now-stable asteroid for a quick survey.

Finding out that the asteroid was hollowed out in places was strange enough. But his world was turned completely upside down when he'd activated some ancient mechanism, sending the asteroid-ship across dozens of light years in no more time than a minute or two; and stranding his team on the beautiful and equally deserted world that one of their number had dubbed "Cocytus".

But they'd gradually unraveled its mysteries. Found out about the fantastically advanced civilization that had sought godhood and immortality by catapulting themselves into Space-Time Six, only to discover that a completely intangible, nonphysical existence wasn't all that the advertisements had made it out to be. And, in the end, returning them to reality and earning their eternal gratitude; for himself and, by extension, his entire species.

The alien technology had seemed incomprehensibly advanced. Doors and ledges that formed from nothingness, and disappeared instantly on command. Crystals, filled with tiny biomachines that could heal wounds or even bring back the dead. But the Cocytans insisted that human potential was great enough to understand it all; more, for that matter. Hundreds of them accompanied him and his team back to Earth - he was apprehensive when they told him that it would take eighty years to return, unlike flights _to_ Cocytus, but the chronological difficulty was resolved by placing the passengers in suspended animation and then time-warping back to 2006 once they arrived.

The general human populace was in an uproar, not knowing what had happened. Their first contact with alien life had involved a rock, almost smashing into their planet, but turning out to be a spaceship that spirited several astronauts off to who-knows-where. What would happen next? Doomsday scenarios were projected, and riots erupted in almost every major city. So, far from being a shock, it was a relief when the Cocytans returned on the very next day, bringing the - completely unharmed - astronauts, and a wealth of technology which they shared freely.

Not even a year after the initial landing cancer had been cured, the common cold was forgotten and automobile manufacturers everywhere scrambled to incorporate gravitic technology into their products. Yes, he mused, society had changed drastically, to say nothing of his own life.

Where would he be now, if none of that had happened? Sitting on a bench somewhere, feeding seagulls? Aimlessly wandering about the city by the bay? Oh, it had been pleasant enough, but being to Cocytus had changed him dramatically. He wanted to see more, do more. He was told of fantastic alien landscapes on planets that could easily be within reach of humanity, if they would put their collective mind to it. Not only that, his new wife - Maggie Robbins, a journalist who had accompanied him on that first expedition - insisted on being a part of the new human expansion into the stars, and he was hardly about to try to stop her.

And so there he was, a middle-aged man (or so he appeared, thanks to suspended animation and life-extending nanotechnology) sitting in the captain's chair on the upper level of the dome-like command center. With the rest of the crew still in hibernation and their consoles retracted, the place was almost eerily quiet. Staring into the huge display that covered the far wall, he could have easily imagined it as a movie theater, given a few more seats adjacent to his. And an usher. And a lady sitting in front of him, wearing an immense feathered hat. And a bowl of popcorn... darn, now he was getting hungry.

The planet they were headed for was quite an enigma, and despite probes being sent the most candid information he'd received about it so far was from Slasher, a winged velociraptor living on Cocytus whose demeanor hardly matched her name. She'd only lived on Mobius for a few years, but had loved talking about it in between explanations of abandoned artifacts. For a moment he pondered dropping by for a visit... no, she had been strongly against the idea. To contact her before their initial meeting on Cocytus - relative to her, anyway - could damage the timeline.

It had sounded like a pleasant enough world, but there were so many unanswered questions. Why was the native culture so similar? Maybe they'd watched Earth television, albeit with a twenty-year lag time. But, more importantly, why were they so physiologically resemblant of the nonsentient creatures native to his own homeworld? The Cocytans had hypothesized about a vast and equally ancient empire that loved tinkering with other races' genes, but in truth they knew almost as little as he did.

But, given enough time he was sure that the colonists could find out. Speaking of time...

"_Horizon_. Has the timewarp module finished charging yet?"

A tiny window came up on the main display. A timer to completion: fifty-seven minutes and counting. Almost an hour to supervise the craft alone.

He knew he wasn't supposed to, but at one point he'd actually tuned the ship's speakers in to local radio broadcasts for a few seconds. He hadn't understood all of the cultural references, but the message was clear enough. A news bulletin about a new human project; a massive, orbital power satellite.

He smiled. It looked like they had a promising future ahead of them on Mobius.

If he'd listened for a few more seconds, he might have realized just how much danger that future was in.

***

"So, basically we're talking a real End of the World situation here, boss?"

The commander shifted around in his seat, turning to address his unusually nervous gunner. "Something like that. End of the World, probably not. End of Human Habitation on Mobius, quite possibly. They still don't know what's causing the satellite to misfire." Or so the official line went...

A query from the driver's station, and he turned around to hear better. "So what are we supposed to do?"

"For now we're to proceed to that complex, full stealth mode engaged. Command will give us more details once we arrive." And they'd better have a really good plan, he thought, because I am completely clueless at this point.

***

Sonic, on the other hand, had never been more sure of himself. Having transferred from the highway to the ground less than a minute ago he now sped across the grass, feet never making contact with the ground, heightened reflexes bypassing obstructions such as trees. The sound barrier was shattered as he accelerated; he was pushing himself to _his_ limits, and he would not permit anything to stop him.

The complex went from background to terrain in a matter of seconds. Plasma turrets set on top of the perimeter fence fired far too late, their primitive targetting routines unable to compensate for his incredible velocity. A quick spindash rendered the fence's metal chain-links ineffective and he continued, hardly even slowed down.

He circumnavigated the immense buildings, eyes flickering from his path every now and then, scanning the complex for any possible entry point. Plenty of windows that he could smash through; no, that might become a tad messy. Maybe he could sneak through the ventilation system, just like they did on the movies!

He stopped to calculate the jump; and then, with a running start, leaped on top of a nearby extension of the complex. Hopping across the multilevel roof, he finally found what looked like an appropriately large shaft and crawled into it.

***

Shadow had calmed down, and was once again in a pleasant mood as he lounged in one of the control room's relatively oversized chairs. For that matter, he was about as close to jubilant as he usually came. With neither Tachyon nor Robotnik present to see him, he pushed his feet against the console, spinning the chair around several times and enjoying himself immensely.

A glance at the timer; less than half an hour until the capacitors were charged, and Robotnik was handling security for the complex, allowing him to luxuriate in his imminent triumph. He sighed in contentment - the only way the situation could possibly be better was if he had a snack.

And, he thought, that could be easily rectified. Lifting the communicator to his mouth, he addressed his aide in the same pleasant tone which he had used that morning. "Tachyon?"

Several seconds passed without a response, but it would certainly take more than that to ruin his mood. He waited a few moments before trying again. "Tachyon? Please respond. Immediately."

***

The falcon in question was abruptly awakened from a dreamless sleep by Shadow's first summons and promptly brought his wrist around to answer - or tried, anyway. It took him a little while to realize that his efforts were failing because the splint was keeping his wing rigid, but he finally succeeded in detaching the communicator with his other hand and bringing it up to his beak shortly after his master's second query.

"Yes?" Tachyon's weary voice had all the eloquence of sandpaper, and Shadow's cheerful tone was quite a contrast.

"T-minus thirty minutes, and counting! I wanted you to please bring me a snack for the celebration."

Tachyon was stunned. Was this the same cat who had-one look at his crippled wing was all he needed to finish the sentence. How long ago was that? Perhaps he'd slept longer than he'd thought. Alternatively, perhaps Shadow was even more capricious than he'd thought.

He forgot to answer, and Shadow continued speaking, offering even more credibility to the latter theory. "Go ahead and get something for yourself, too. I want you to be here when the fireworks start."

Tachyon sighed. "Sir, I'm really quite exhausted, and if you don't mind I'd much rather remain in my nest..."

"Oh, don't be such a spoilsport. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity! Besides, once the timeline is disrupted you won't have to worry about your injuries anymore."

"...say again?"

"It's really simple. About eighty years ago, the humans launched the _Horizon_. And less than an hour from now it's going to timewarp back to the day it was launched, thereby using time travel to simulate true faster-than-light travel." Back in the control center, Shadow smiled broadly. "When it arrived, they effectively threw a starship-sized wrench into my campaign of world conquest. But what if it were destroyed before it warped back to Mobius circa 2020?"

It took a few moments for Tachyon's mind to fully process the ramifications of this statement. "The humans will never have landed... and you will control Mobius in the present?"

"Darn straight. Now hurry up, already! Only twenty-nine minutes left."

The dazed falcon got up and walked out of his room.

***

"Faster. Go faster!"

Eyes not moving from the road - hardly even blinking, for that matter - and hands in a death grip on the steering wheel, Jerome yelled back a response. "For crying out loud, this hovercraft's already pushing two hundred!"

"That's only a third of Sonic's top speed."

"And three times what I'm used to." He quickly reached over to his side and pushed his handheld computer in Sir Charles' direction. "Do something useful! Find a map of the highway and tell me what exit we need."

While he lacked Jerome's specialized training, the Mobian was nevertheless quite computer literate and quickly brought the relevant data onto Crystal's screen. "Exit 42..." He looked up, and pointed beyond the windshield. "Right there. No, wait, it's closed off!"

His admonition came a moment too late, however. The vehicle smashed through the construction barricades on a nearly perpendicular course to their arrangement, and was sent flying into the air a second afterwards as it passed over the antigravity field which Sonic had encountered earlier.

Neither screamed, but both pairs of eyes were wide as Jerome sought out the road below and frantically brought the falling hovercraft in its direction. Inertial dampeners and gravitic drive notwithstanding, the front end of the vehicle made contact with the highway, and noisily. Airbags were deployed and gradually deflated as the hovercraft stabilized and its occupants caught their breaths.

Several seconds passed in near-silence.

"That's it," Jerome finally said. "Your turn. I'm not driving anymore. May I never see another hovercraft as long as I live."

Sir Charles shook his head in response. "If you'll recall, I can't reach the controls properly."

The human sighed as he placed his hands back on the steering wheel. "Well, you can't blame me for trying..."

***

Once again, Sonic questioned the collective wisdom of the movies he'd seen. The shaft was extremely confining, even on a Mobian scale, and it took all of his willpower to keep from losing his mind out of claustrophobia. Odd noises emanated from the rest of the complex, from fans blowing in the shaft to mechanical impacts outside it, and he kept awkwardly turning to look behind him. At every intersection, he was convinced that something was going to grab him from off to the side. And he still didn't even know which way he was going!

He desperately wanted to scream out loud, from both fear and frustration - no, that would be a bad idea. If anyone was listening, it would hardly do for them to hear him. But it was still very hard not to think about it. About the metal walls; not only how confining they were, but how cold. Freezing air blew through the shaft, and he tried to keep his teeth from chattering noisily.

Yes, it was definitely a bad idea to go crawling around in that shaft. He decided that he would take the first opportunity to get out that presented itself, but it was several minutes before one did, in the form of a small grate on the "floor".

He eagerly crawled up to it and peered through the metal slits. The room beyond was almost as dark as the shaft he was in, but dim, multicolored light played across its surfaces in varying patterns. Looked like there were a bunch of computers or something in there. Oddly-shaped shadows were abundant; wait a minute, that dark mass off to the side couldn't be a shadow. It had eyes... which were staring right at him...

"Hello?"

The tentative greeting had hardly been extended when the mass he had been watching lunged at him; leaping onto a chair below the grate and slashing at the metal, crystalline claws seemingly no more impeded by it than water. Muscles tightened with fear, the hedgehog struggled to crawl away but was grabbed by the arm and dragged, head-first, out of the shaft.

The cat hopped off of the chair as Sonic tumbled onto it upside-down, frantically trying to right himself, not to mention get away. He'd finally succeeded at the former task when his feline host extended a hand cheerfully. "Hello, Sonic! Very pleased to meet you. Welcome to the end of your life!"

The hedgehog's eyes were wide; a perfect reflection of how his mind was frozen in fear and indecision. What was going on? Who was this guy?

"Oh, silly me. There should be introductions first." There was an artificial - and very wide - smile, and the hand was retracted. "You're 'Priority Hedgehog', aka Sonic, aka 'Ambassador Hedgehog's nephew'. Also known as the moronic," he chuckled at his own pun, "juvenile who's managed to elude Tachyon pretty much the entire day, for what reason I can't imagine. I'm Shadow, future AND former ruler of Mobius. Well, for all intents and purposes anyway."

"You're the guy who found the eighth Chaos Emerald?"

Shadow shook his head, making a "tsk tsk" sound as he did so. "A common misconception. I did not FIND the emerald. Probability GRANTED me the emerald so I could finish the work that the other, inept holders of the emeralds could not: bringing chaos and darkness to this excessively orderly world."

This was getting very weird, very fast. "Who's Probability??"

The feline permitted his artificial cheerfulness to slip, and stared daggers at Sonic. "Don't you know?" He rolled his eyes. "The Laws of Probability. Chaos manifested on a daily basis. The only guiding force that Mobius ever has, or ever will, know. And one which modern society seems to have pretty much rejected in favor of those silly human religions."

Sonic, as of yet, knew little about "those silly human religions", but continued asking questions to stall whatever plans the cat had for him. "Probability... guides Mobius?"

Shadow waved his hand in the air dismissively. "In a sense, yes. But not literally. No, they're far too subtle - and random - for that. Their existence simply means that your orderly kingdoms and political structures continue to degenerate and become more chaotic. And chaos means power."

Aha! Shadow started pacing, revealing a door behind his former position. Any second now Sonic should be able to make a dash for it... "No, chaos is the absence of order."

The feline stopped pacing - once again in front of the door - and whirled to face Sonic. "Exactly! The absence of order. Don't you see? The emeralds are chaos incarnate."

Shadow came closer until he was standing directly in front of the chair. "Don't you know how powerful they are? No, probably not. I can see the ignorance in your hideously large eyes." He chuckled again. "I controlled every one of the emeralds, and used them to the fullest. Do you have any idea what that's like? To be so infused with power as to be instantly changed to a higher form of matter? Of course you don't!" He slapped the hedgehog - hard - claws leaving several cuts on his cheek.

Years later, Sonic would have recognized this as full-blown emerald madness on Shadow's part, further aggravated by his finally being confronted with the hedgehog who had _kept him from the emeralds_. He had no idea how much danger he was in, but was beginning to understand as the other Mobian became more blatantly hostile.

Could he make it to the door? No, not with Shadow in the way. Not without a struggle, at least. And judging by those claws of his, the contest would not be in Sonic's favor. Said claws were now fully extended, fingers flexing in anticipation.

"You know what? You've really been a pain in the neck." A quick swipe at Sonic's own neck; he pushed the chair backwards and narrowly escaped a fatal injury. Unfazed, Shadow continued speaking. "Almost as bad as the humans, but not quite."

Shadow checked the timer, and turned back to Sonic with a frown. "Time's almost up. I'm going to have to hurry this up if it's to get done at all."

The feline stepped back several feet and crowched, winding up for what looked like it would be a very sharp pounce. Green eyes almost as shiny as his claws stared into Sonic's, and the hedgehog stared right back. Shadow wanted a fight? Fine. Who better than the descendant of his former nemesis to provide it? Stacked odds or not, Sonic certainly wasn't going to run away this time. His muscles tensed as he prepared to match crystalline claws with electrified quills.

***

Tachyon walked through the corridors as quickly as he could manage, fatigue and injury conspiring to create a general state of near-incoherence in his mind. The tray he was carrying tilted in his grasp every now and then, and he was forced to concentrate to keep from dropping it altogether.

What structured thought he did experience had to do with Shadow's recent explanation. It all sounded so convenient! One emerald-powered energy blast, and not only were their problems over, but they never would have started. But if the humans hadn't landed, then Shadow would'nt need to fire the weapon, and so... he shook his head in confusion, and hoped that his master understood temporal mechanics better than he did.

And what will happen to me? Tachyon pondered. Will I never be disgraced by 'Priority Hedgehog'? That's certainly a pleasant thought. Perhaps I will never have even shown weakness during my training.

That's not really what you want, and you know it.

"Be quiet!", he called to the empty hallway. Looking around, sheepishly hoping that no-one heard him yelling at what was likely a hallucination, he continued.

Finally coming to the door to the control room, he carefully raised his splinted wing to the security panel while trying not to drop the tray in his other hand. Beyond, Shadow seemed to be about to pounce on- it couldn't be! Surely he wasn't HERE of all places! But the cat turned to look as the door was opened, and Sonic quickly manifested his presence by taking advantage of the distraction to sprint through the door, knocking Tachyon over in the process.

Several seconds later he picked himself up off of the floor - grateful that his injuries had not been compounded by the collision - and stepped over the debris of the tray's contents to enter the room. Now what would Shadow have him do? Oh dear... the cat was in an even more horrible mood than earlier, probably best to leave him alone...

"Tachyon."

He stopped in the doorway. "Yes, sir?"

Shadow traced his claws along the side of one of the consoles, digging progressively deeper ruts in its surface, the noise of shearing metal increasing in volume even as his own voice remained low. "Why didn't you tell me how fast he was?"

"Um..."

"Didn't you ever see that one nuisance hedgehog who was around back before the humans landed? Have you any idea how much trouble he caused?" Claws lifted and dug in again elsewhere.

"Ah... no. No, sir." He actively forced his legs not to tremble.

"And now you let what is most likely one of his descendants escape. Oh, but not for long. I'm going to destroy him! And woe to anyone, or anything, that gets in my way." He removed his claws from the panel and raised them fiercely, looking for all the world like a bipedal wildcat. "Run, Tachyon. As fast as you can."

He didn't need to be told twice!

***

The hovercraft was once again inert, the wall of the complex not four feet away from the windshield and barbed wire wrapped around a side-view mirror. Its driver calmly turned to the passenger.

"Is that close enough for you?"

"I'm surprised that the security 'bots aren't after us." Sir Charles unbuckled his seatbelt and opened the door, hopping out.

"Maybe someone else is distracting them." Jerome smiled, if only slightly. "Just in case, I'm taking this thing as far away as possible. If you're successful, you should be able to arrange for alternate transportation. If not, then you won't need to worry about it now will you?"

"That goes without saying."

"Right. Good luck!" The hedgehog shut the door, and quickly put some distance between himself and the hovercar before its inexperienced driver turned it around and brought it away.

***

After two dozen ninety-degree turns, several broken doors and a tumbling, spindashing descent down a flight of stairs which had left him somewhat bruised, Sonic stood in one of the lowest levels of the complex. Machinery surrounded him on either side, leaving only a network of narrow walkways in which to maneuver. Every now and then he could see a security drone through some of the electronics; best not to let them see me, he thought. Not much room to run in.

He wasn't exactly an expert at stealthiness, but the noise generated by the machinery was so much that he guessed he could have probably called out to the robots and they still wouldn't have found him. Silly things. He wasn't quite sure where to go, but figured that he was on the right track - this equipment was probably vital to the complex. All he had to do was find out which machine was most vital, and destroy it. Just like he'd wrecked that hovercraft over and over again.

To his right the machinery gave way to reveal a more formal passage, several doors marking the otherwise blank walls. And there, several hundred feet away, was Robotnik! Just standing there!

Sonic charged, and his accelerated brain distinctly made out individual aspects of his surroundings as he did so. Tiny etchings on the walls and floor. The look of shock on the human's face, which slowly turned to malice. His hand tightening around a lever on the wall, and pulling it down.

At several hundred miles per hour Sonic smacked into an invisible barrier where there had been none, his own field interacting with it and sparing him from horrible EM burns by knocking him backwards. He picked himself off of the floor and stared daggers at Robotnik, searched for a way out-

The world seemed to explode all around him in a fury of light and sound, fire clearly visible at the sides of the corridor. He was vaguely aware of falling, just before blacking out.

***

Though he normally favored stealthiness, Sir Charles frantically ran about the complex in search of useful information. Preferably any indicator of where Sonic was, or better yet, what the most critical target would be. Where was a public-access terminal when he needed one? Didn't the humans always insist on placing floating terminals just about everywhere in their cities?

At least the security drones hadn't spotted him. If they'd been any more active he would have had to maintain a more cautious approach. Perhaps they were too busy dealing with Sonic. He hoped that his nephew was alright...

Rounding a corner, he was abruptly thrown on his back as he collided with an unexpected obstacle: a Mobian falcon, with a splint on one wing and a very surprised expression on his face. At least he assumed that it was male; it was always hard to tell with non-humanoid Mobians. At any rate, it quickly dispelled any doubts as to its gender when it spoke.

"What are you doing here?"

Sir Charles stood up and brushed himself off. He didn't draw a weapon - this entity didn't seem at all threatening, probably wasn't even involved in the whole mess. Still, something didn't quite seem right about the falcon, and he remained alert and cautious even as he offered a hand to help him up. "I'm trying to find my nephew and shut down that satellite. Can you help?"

The bird winced slightly; probably his injuries, Sir Charles thought. "No. Not at all. Right now," and he brought himself into a brisk walk, "I'm just trying to get away."

Now that was certainly strange. "Away from what?"

***

A thousand possible answers flooded Tachyon's mind. He wanted to get away from Priority Hedgehog, from the stupid creature's uncle, from Robotnik, from the human colonies; or anything even remotely human, for that matter.

But his contemplation was cut short as a black, Mobian feline stalked into the corridor the way that he had come earlier. He pointed to Shadow in response to Sir Charles' question, and then ran off. As fast as he could.

***

That falcon may have been odd, but this guy certainly looked like he meant business! Sir Charles instantly pulled an electrically-charged dart from a small pocket on his belt and prepared to take aim.

The change in Shadow's demeanor was more subtle than that in his mood. No unkempt fur - he'd hardly had any time to mess it up, even if he'd wanted to. No foaming at the mouth, no real external indicators of the insane rage that drove him. If anything he appeared more controlled than before; movements as quiet as they were swift, and with all the co-ordination of a well-oiled machine. Even his eyes scanned the area with precision.

Sir Charles pointed at the departing bird while keeping the dart ready in his hand. "Why are you chasing him? What's going on?"

Shadow continued pacing forward. "I'm not chasing him. He just happened to be in my way, is all. You're in my way too, 'Ambassador Hedgehog'. And so is your nephew." Eyes narrowed. "I hate it when people get in my way."

The hedgehog raised his weapon hand, heart pounding more perceptibly. "Don't move."

Nearly luminescent, green eyes widened slightly. "Or what? You'll attempt to _harm_ me? You really have no idea how many of your kind I've already killed, Sir Charles, do you. Anachronistic and poorly trained knights are no match for chaos." He hunched backwards, readying for a pounce.

Sir Charles' fear was almost tangible at this point, but he overcame it with training and discipline and hurled the dart in Shadow's direction. Hands were brought up defensively; sparks flew as the projectile collided with pure willpower, amplified to coherent form by the power crystals which comprised the feline's claws. A soft thump was heard as the dart made contact with the carpeted floor.

No longer content to converse with his prey, Shadow sprang at it.

***

After only a few seconds of unconsciousness, Sonic came to. It looked like he was sitting at the bottom of an elevator shaft; a shaft which only went up about ten feet, to all appearances. He was standing on an elevator, and Robotnik had somehow blown it out? A strange move. But, he thought as he looked up, a good one. There was no way he was going to be able to get back up. Not directly, anyway... he looked around.

He was back in the underground labyrinth. The air was cold, and equally humid. Partially-harvested crystalline growths glowed dimly, and utilitarian lamps cast a grayish light on the area. So this was what was under the complex!

Not having any better ideas, Sonic walked through the stone corridors. He could still hear the whirring of machinery all around him; evidently some sort of equipment had been set up down there, because the noise wasn't just coming from above. And a minute or two later, he found its source. Some sort of system of carts attached to a chain - dipping down into the water on a regular path, and then coming back up on the other side. What was it for? Mining? He certainly didn't know. It didn't look like they were doing anything for the time being, though, as the carts were empty both going down and coming up.

He peered across the expanse; a more whitish light was visible at the other end. Another way out, but the water was blocking him. How to cross it?

Even as critical as he figured time was, he took a second or two to brace himself before hopping into one of the carts. It descended into the freezing water, and he had to fight to keep from letting go of the chain, or inhaling fluid.

The fifteen seconds that he was underwater seemed to stretch on nearly forever, and he eagerly leaped off of the cart as soon as it ascended, almost falling back down in the process. The hedgehog shivered violently, and tried to shake the water off.

He'd made it! Freezing as he was, he knew that a brisk run would quickly solve the problem, and set out to do just that, headed in the direction of the light he'd seen and ready to put a stop to whatever plans Robotnik - or Shadow - had for the power satellite.

Unfortunately, he was completely incapable of doing so.


	7. Final Zone; Epilogue

Chapter Seven

Final Zone

---------------

Its purpose was not readily apparent, but Sonic knew what the Chaos Engine was for nonetheless. If the giant, constantly moving pillars weren't enough indication, the emeralds themselves were; brightly shining in their places in the front of Robotnik's station on the far end of the walkway, undoubtedly protected by another forcefield. The human grinned at him, as if daring him to come closer, and a plasma turret above the console glowed menacingly.

The pillars moved up and down slowly, and then stopped completely. The plasma turret fired at Sonic; he ran into the middle of the engine to avoid being shot. Immediately afterwards the metallic columns began to extend from their places in the floor and ceiling.

Sonic flung himself at the nearest pillar; no good. They were charged with fantastic amounts of energy; his quills stood on end just standing near them, and he never even made contact. But he kept trying, alternately dodging the cannon's shots and ineffectively spindashing the engine's components.

This was getting him nowhere... he began to panic. What was he supposed to do?

***

Two immense war machines sped across the ground adjacent to the complex, a third having succumbed to the combined firepower of several dozen security drones. The vehicle hadn't exploded; simply melted, as its armor was overwhelmed by blast after blast of superheated plasma.

It must have been horrible for those inside... the commander quickly pushed that thought away, and concentrated on his Heads-Up Display. "Colson!"

The gunner's face was firmly planted in his targetting scope. "Yeah?"

"We're coming up on the targetting sat's designated co-ordinates. Get ready to let 'em have it!"

"Yo!" And there it was, a side of the wall bracketed by a yellow reticle, smaller boxes surrounding each individual element of the swarm of wasp-like robots around them, their cannons chipping ablative armor away and making the tank's interior almost unbearably hot. We may not make it out alive, Colson thought, but we're going to hose whatever it is that's powering the satellite, and good luck to any 'bot that tries to stop us.

***

Sonic heard a loud, smashing noise above him, and the complex shook as several armor-piercing rounds were driven into the machinery. The pillars extruded again. And was it just him, or were they moving slower this time? The tingling sensation that he got when he approached them was still strong, but it felt different somehow.

Another plasma bolt was neatly sidestepped, and another attack was aimed. He slid off, adding to his discouragement - which, coupled with anxiety and adrenalin, was conspiring to drive him completely insane. What was he supposed to do?

Once again, metal columns pushed out from the floor and ceiling. But something was different this time... one of the pillars was vulnerable. He didn't know how; he just knew it. Were the laws of probability manifesting themselves in an even more chaotic way than before? Or was it Divine Intervention? A more mature Sonic would remember that day and firmly decide on the latter, but at the time the ten-year-old hedgehog was hardly about to question it. He simply flung himself at the pillar, curling into a spiny sphere in midair.

Metal grinded and finally yielded, shrapnel flying across the room as the machine began to show signs of weakening and Robotnik's face began to show signs of anxiety.

***

Sir Charles jumped out of the way, and Shadow's claws barely grazed him. The cat prepared for another attack, but the complex's lights flickered as the engine was worn down; Shadow was distracted long enough for his "prey" to jab him with another dart at close range. The energy scorched his fur and poured through his feline form, putting out enough electricity to stop any Mobian in its tracks. And it did.

He collapsed onto the carpet, nearly losing consciousness, and tried to draw on the power crystals for strength. How could this happen? He'd never lost a fight before! Though it had been eighty years, after all... Evidently deciding it more important to help Sonic now that his assailant was gasping for breath on the floor, Sir Charles quickly ran off towards the noise he'd heard when the tank shells smashed into the complex.

Shadow tried to grab one of the hedgehog's legs as he passed, but dropped back onto the floor, limbs refusing to heed his brain. He kept trying, though, and several seconds later he forced himself back into an upright position, anger taking over where his energy had left off, and filling every corner of his mind. The hedgehogs would die!

But he stopped in midstride, and midthought. A bright, blue thread of pure energy appeared not ten feet in front of him, widening to a tear in the continuum large enough to step through. And, as if in confirmation, two Mobian echidnas departed the portal, one shorter than the other and both wearing enough electronics on their belts - and even arms, of the taller - to prompt jealousy on the part of even the most technologically obsessed engineer.

Shadow was hardly an impressive sight at this point, his singed fur standing on end and his eyes wide with recognition and surprise. The portal closed behind the two echidnas, and the taller quickly pressed a few buttons on some incomprehensible device around his wrist before speaking. "Co-ordinates confirmed; we're a little off, maybe a week or so."

"That's him, Robin! Right there!" The shorter one pointed at Shadow.

The taller echidna stomped forward and glared at the cat. "Did you beat my brother up?"

His brother interrupted. "And he stole my time gun, too! Don't forget that."

Shadow just groaned. "This really isn't my day..." Apparently taking that as sufficient confirmation, Robin effectively knocked the weakened feline out with a single, powerful blow. His brother grinned widely.

"Serves him right."

***

Sonic continued leaping about the engine, dodging sporadic plasma bolts and precisely aiming attacks at pillars that weakened visibly, metal warping and buckling. Finally the whole contraption ground to a halt, tiny explosions visible across every column.

The exhausted hedgehog sank to the floor. He'd won! The machine - whatever it was - was destroyed!

He closed his eyes. The nearly inert complex was silent compared with its prior cacophony of mechanical noise, and he was able to rest, tired brain thinking of little else.

Rapid footfalls were heard. What was that? Eyes opened; Robotnik was getting away! He knew he'd forgotten something.

The human was climbing into his hovercraft, perhaps twenty feet off from the console he had previously stood at. Sonic climbed to his feet - this time, Robotnik's retreat would NOT be successful. The vehicle lifted off, and the hedgehog began running towards it. It flew through opened hangar doors, accelerating rapidly, leaving, going beyond his reach...

...having a Mobian hedgehog's spines shear cleanly through its engine. Falling, controls not responding to the enraged human's curses. And finally colliding with the ground, its driver thrown about in his seat and jolted violently enough to be rendered unconscious. Sonic stood several feet off, staring at the wrecked machine, elated at his triumph - exhausted, but elated nonetheless.

A sound came from off to the side, and he turned to see the only other hedgehog in the complex applauding vigorously. Now, his victory was complete. This time he was the one who ran to and hugged the other, proud of his success and thankful that the day's events had finally been brought to a close.

And tired. Very tired. "Uncle Chuck?"

"Yes?"

"Can we go back to the house now? I'm...", and the drowsy Mobian succumbed to fatigue before completing the sentence.

Epilogue

--August 10, 2020--

***

The otherwise flat, grassy plains were covered in wreckage. Grayish metal, brownish metal, black metal - mostly black metal - dotted it everywhere, melted and twisted into unrecognizable heaps.

The air shimmered. Several dozen dark, spidery robots appeared where there had been none; and in less than a second, there were none once again. Cannons flashed on the only other intact machine on the battleground; a fantastic starship, gigantic cylinders attached to each other, so long that the ends were barely visible. Immense landing struts were extended, holding the ridiculously massive craft up using engineering principles and laws of physics that would have taken the humans hundreds of years to discover on their own.

On the Horizon's bridge, the hastily-awakened flight crew was downright hyperactive. Sweaty palms gripped the gunnery controls, and gazes remained on the targetters even as Commander Low spoke. "Is that all of 'em?"

Someone at a sciences station nodded. "I'm not picking up any more of those unusual energy readings; it's probably safe to say that there won't be any more invisible robots for a while."

"Damage report?"

A crewman called up the relevant information, and grinned. "We just got hit with everything from plasma torches to high-caliber rail guns, and the energy barrier's still in place." Score one for Cocytan technology.

But a frown came to Boston's face as he pondered what had just happened. They had barely even entered the atmosphere before being attacked. By whom? For what possible reason? The probes had said that the planet was governed by some sort of peaceful, nearly global kingdom. How much could change in fifteen years? This would certainly cause problems for their colonization mission.

Their ship had easily withstood the attack, but its equipment was so advanced that it would be impossible for the colonists to replicate for a long time. Until then, they would have to make do.

Still, Boston wasn't overly worried. Because their strength wasn't in their technology; it was in their humanity. In their willpower, intellect, and ingenuity - the same traits that had saved the Cocytans. And now, they would have to save themselves. From what, he didn't know; but in the long run, it didn't matter.

They had gone through the trouble of building those probes and that massive starship, and he'd be darned if he was going to let it all go to waste. He made a resolution, then and there: not only would they survive on Mobius, they would thrive.

And they did.

***

--August 10, 2097--

***

"GOOD MORNING, MOBIUS, AND HAPPY ARRIVAL DAY!!"

The crew of one of the two surviving tanks had hardly gotten any sleep the night before, along with a good deal of the rest of the base. It seemed that everyone, from the air cavalry wing who'd bailed them out at the last minute to the logistics personnel who staffed the barracks, had wanted to party for most of the night. And why not? They'd succeeded in their first military operation in years, and this time even the Mobians weren't complaining. Perhaps it was also because they didn't want to acknowledge that the satellite had vaporized a good two-thirds of their armored division in the process.

Their alarms got them up at the usual time; the tank crew had the day off, but Walters and Colson both decided to get something to eat before going back to their bunks. The latter was quite surprised to find his commander sitting in the barracks' closest equivalent to a lounge, watching television.

"Boss, please tell me you didn't actually stay up all night."

He shook his head. "I wanted to get up early to tape some of the morning shows. Watch, the President's talking about what happened yesterday."

Colson listened for a moment. "What is this about hedgehogs? Did we miss something?"

The commander shushed him, and continued listening. The man on the television acknowledged the military's contributions as well, and spoke in such positive tones that it almost sounded like a recruitment ad.

Walters started yelling at the television. "Names! Mention some names!"

As soon as he had done so, Colson started shouting over him. "No, don't!"

The commander gave him a pointed look. "And why not?"

"No offense, sir - well, maybe some." He grinned. "But if I'm remembered for only one thing in my life, I don't want it to be as part of a Sergeant Robotnik's platoon."

The commander frowned. "Mine is a perfectly legitimate name."

"Yeah, in the Czech Republic."

He waved a fist in mock anger. "I'll 'Check' you in a minute..."

"An excellent idea! Who's up for a game of chess over breakfast?"

***

Tachyon considered it an absolute disgrace that he was forced to carry a weapon to be able to properly defend Shadow. His claws had always been more than sufficient, but with one wing temporarily crippled he couldn't use them very effectively at all. At least nobody could see him well in the dark.

The grass was unpleasantly cold under his bare feet, and he found himself wishing for a jacket. The sky was cloudless and dotted with thousands of stars, but he kept his gaze towards the ground. He hated such reminders of his own insignificance, especially with Shadow so displeased with him.

The cat seemed to be in a surprisingly pleasant mood, though, given what had happened the day before. That was Shadow for you; always planning something new. He wondered if his master had finally given up on driving the humans away. Probably not.

Robotnik was present as well, angrily pacing back and forth. The human seemed to derive about as much pleasure from being outside as Tachyon did - give him a nest in a nice, air-conditioned building over being outdoors any day. Well, outdoors on the ground anyway. He was much more comfortable in the air.

But that probably wasn't all that he was upset about; Robotnik had also spent most of the day in court hearings. Or something like that. Shadow wasn't too clear on specifics, but it seemed that he'd actually managed to convince them that the satellite had misfired. The military no longer wanted them around, though, so alternate living arrangements would have to be made. He thought he'd heard something about moving to Mobotropolis, but as always Shadow would wait until it was absolutely necessary to tell him.

What were they waiting for? Oh... probably that. Some sort of spacecraft, or else an aircraft with a gravitic propulsion system, was landing in the clearing. They all approached, and he watched as a male human disembarked and exchanged greetings with Robotnik. The other human's features weren't easy to make out as he faced away from the ship's lights, but he certainly didn't appear at all threatening.

Their conversation lasted for perhaps a minute or two as Shadow joined in, and Tachyon tuned it out, completely uninterested. He was becoming very tired, and made an effort to keep from falling asleep on the job.

Finally, however, the human opened a hatch - this time in the side of his small craft - and entered. The light from the inside of the vessel was bright enough that Tachyon had to squint to make anything out; the pilot was leading a small, roughly Mobian-sized animal out on a leash, to all appearances.

Finally his eyes adjusted, and he took a better look at the creature. Some sort of bipedal reptilian form, with a tail almost as long as the rest of its body. But of greater concern were its immense, and very sharp, claws. What was this thing? And did it pose a threat?

Evidently, Shadow had been thinking the same thing. "Are you sure it's safe?" he queried of the human, who nodded in response.

"Of course! Especially with all the tranquilizers in her system. This one's a youngster - Raptors don't learn to hunt 'till they're at least a year or two older. And," he turned to Robotnik, "I do believe my client has some nifty high-tech gadget to ensure his complete safety, if I recall from our phone conversations."

Robotnik nodded, smiling that unpleasant smile of his, as the other human removed the collar. "I even have the perfect name picked out." Crowching, he beckoned the creature closer. "Come here, Slasher."

Tachyon suppressed a shiver which had nothing to do with the cold. It was obvious that this lifeform had not been purchased out of some idle fascination with zoology.

Slasher cocked her head back, giving Robotnik the most quizzical look she could manage in her drugged state. "Who are you?", the dinosaur asked, in a surprisingly humanoid voice.

The doctor's eyes widened, and the other human smiled. "Told you they're intelligent. This one's already learning to talk. No extra charge, of course."

Robotnik didn't bother to answer his new pet's question, but simply placed another collar of some sort around its neck, attached to a leash in his hand. So that was the "high-tech gadget"; probably something like the mind control mechanisms in those robots of his. And sure enough, the raptor seemed to stiffen somewhat as the collar was attached, eyes instantly becoming more alert.

He might almost have pitied her if he wasn't so jealous. Just look at that; everyone was crowding around the creature and discussing it with genuine interest. Shadow was even patting it on the head! When was the last time he'd done that for HIM?

But, he grudgingly admitted to himself, it was a beautiful creature in its own way. It looked as if it had been specifically designed for combat! He glanced down at himself. What was he designed for? Flight, with a side of hunting. No wonder everyone was so impressed with this "Slasher".

Still... at least he could fly, or would be able to once his wing healed. Ha! He would love to see the dinosaur try to do that.

***

Sonic had been thoroughly tired out for all of Arrival Day, and spent most of it resting in Jerome's house. The activities had been postponed until the day after, but the peace conference was still held; a very tired Sir Charles had tried to project enough enthusiasm to give a positive impression on the human TV stations.

Lunchtime the day afterward found him back in the Green Hill Zone. The meal finished, the adults were conversing at one of the picnic tables. Quiet as always, Jerome's participation mainly involved playing with his handheld computer while half-listening to his sister and her husband converse with Sir Charles; they were probably still talking about the events of the day before yesterday.

He looked up from the screen. Perhaps fifty feet away Sonic was putting on quite a show for his sister's children. That was an encouraging sight. Maybe something would come out of the whole Human/Mobian peace movement after all.

For his part, Sonic was initially somewhat wary of the human kids, but they seemed friendly enough. For that matter, they were absolutely captivated by the retelling of his little adventure. At their insistence he supplemented his narrative with demonstration, acting it out as he went. Running, jumping, spindashing into imaginary obstacles. Boy, did he ever love showing off.

The human colonies weren't all bad, he supposed, but he was still looking forward to returning to Mobotropolis. Partly because he wanted to tell his friends about what had happened, and partly because he just plain wanted to be home, where he would never have to worry about Robotnik, Tachyon, and Shadow again.

Right?

THE BEGINNING


End file.
